The 3rd edition of the Kazimierz Kutz Awards is ahead of us. The winner will be announced on 16 February 2023, the day of the 94th birthday of the patron of the prize. Among the nominees, there are: Marta Frej, illustrator; Maja Kleczewska, director; Robert Konieczny, architect; Maja Ostaszewska, actress; and Henryk Waniek, painter.
The Kazimierz Kutz Award, on the one hand, commemorates the excellent, rebellious artist who died in December 2018, and who remained involved in broadly understood social issues until the very end of his life, but also honours extraordinary people who somehow resemble Kutz with their attitude, activities and everyday work. The organisers of the Award are the City of Katowice, the University of Silesia in Katowice and Stanisław Wyspiański Silesian Theatre in Katowice.
The award was presented for the first time in 2021 – it was then received by Anna Dymna, an outstanding theatre and film actress (who often starred in Kazimierz Kutz’s projects) and the Chair of the ‘Mimo wszystko’ Foundation since 2003. The main goal of Dymna’s Foundation is to help adults with intellectual disabilities, support their treatment, rehabilitation and education. The second edition of the Award in 2022 is the success of Szczepan Twardoch, a writer and publicist, the author of many best-selling titles, including Drach, Morphine, The King of Warsaw, The Kingdom and Humility. It was also then that the distinction ‘Ambassador of Silesia’ was awarded for the first time – it was received by Prof. Tadeusz Sławek, prominent literary scholar, translator, prose writer, Rector of the University of Silesia in the years 1996–2002.
Kazimierz Kutz Award 2023 – nominees
In this edition, the Jury has nominated five artists:
- Marta Frej is an illustrator, painter and meme author. In her artistic work, she raises issues such as women’s rights and feminism, minorities’ rights, as well as the issues of exclusion and intolerance. She grew up in Częstochowa; for several years, she has been associated with Gdynia, where she lives and runs a studio. In 2017, she was awarded the O!Lśnienia award for ‘giving memes the rank of an artistic work;’
- Maja Ostaszewska is one of the most popular and versatile Polish actresses. She is known for her theatrical, film and TV series roles. Winner of the Polityka’s Passport and two Eagle awards – Polish Film Awards. She has been fighting for animal rights for many years. When the refugee crisis began in Poland, she actively joined the help efforts on the Polish-Belarusian border. Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, she has been working effectively and with full determination for Ukrainian refugees;
- Maja Kleczewska is one of the most prominent Polish theatre directors, recognisable and appreciated also abroad – her plays have been presented, among others, in Seoul, Paris, Tbilisi and Madrid. She has been awarded and appreciated many times at Polish and international theatre festivals (including receiving the Silver Lion at the Venice Biennale). Her works arouse the interest of theatre critics, and the titles she has produced are often difficult to buy tickets for – plays directed by her attract viewers from distant corners of the country, cause lively discussions and provoke reflection;
- Robert Konieczny is an architect of international renown. Hans Ibelings, the author of the prestigious publication European Architecture since 1980, named the studio run by Robert Konieczny – KWK PROMES as the only Polish studio that contributed to the development of European architecture. He is the author of the famous Ark, where he lives, as well as the Aatrial House, the Square House, the UNIKATO block of flats and the award-winning Dialogue Centre ‘Upheavals’ in Szczecin;
- Henryk Waniek is a painter, graphic artist, writer, translator and essayist. At the centre of his interests, we will find issues related to esotericism, fantasy, alchemy and magic. He was born in Oświęcim, grew up in Katowice and attended university in Kraków. Thanks to artistic scholarships, he created and lived, among others, in New York and Florence. He has about 100 solo and group exhibitions to his name. His literary activity focuses on the broadly understood Silesia – as the title of one of Waniek’s books suggests, ‘from Oświęcim to Zgorzelec.’
Kazimierz Kutz Award – the Jury
Who will receive the Kutz Award in 2023 will be decided in January by a jury consisting of: Halina Bieda, Prof. Antoni Cygan, Krystyna Doktorowicz, PhD, DLitt, Assoc. Prof.; Prof. Andrzej Gwóźdź; Jerzy Illg, PhD; Aleksandra Klich; Dariusz Kortko; Prof. Ryszard Koziołek; Marcin Krupa, PhD; Olgierd Łukaszewicz; Ewa Niewiadomska; Jacek Siebel, PhD; Edyta Sytniewska; Iwona Świętochowska-Kutz; Robert Talarczyk (Chair); and Piotr Zaczkowski. It is worth remembering that the prize itself consists of PLN 50,000 and a statuette by Ksawery Kaliski designed by Erwin Sówka – it is one of the last works by the artist from Grupa Janowska.
This year’s Award ceremony
The Kazimierz Kutz Award will be presented on 16 February 2023 during a gala at the Stanisław Wyspiański Silesian Theatre in Katowice. The event starts at 6 p.m. on the Main Stage. Later, according to the tradition of the Award gala, the play Piąta strona świata will be performed. It is based on Kutz’s best-selling debut novel. It is directed by Robert Talarczyk and received many awards, including the Golden Mask award for the play of the year.
Prof. Ryszard Koziołek about the Award
Thanks to the Kazimierz Kutz Award, each and every year, the Jury explores the territories of Polish contemporary culture in search of an artist who carries the legacy of the Patron of the Prize. We search for an outstanding artist whose persona or artwork pushes us to live more wisely, consciously, and to be inclined to think about the common good of our society, not just our personal, familial or tribal needs. Regardless of a discipline or art genre, as Kazimierz Kutz himself was engaged in a plethora of them. This year’s list of brilliant people proves the societal engagement of Polish culture and confirms the uniqueness of this Award in the midst of all honours and distinctions we present our artists with.
Members of the Kazimierz Kutz Award Jury along with the winners of the 2nd edition | Photo by Przemysław Jendroska / the Silesian Theatre in Katowice