Mr Herbert – the Traveller. New exhibition at the Palace of the Commonwealth
Sunday, 27 October, saw the opening of the new exhibition Mr Herbert – the Traveller at the Palace of the Commonwealth. The exhibition presents manuscripts by the Polish poet, essayist, drama writer and moralist Zbigniew Herbert, author of Barbarian in the Garden, revealing his philosophy of travel. Visitors can view the exhibition and accompanying immersive audiovisual installations from 30 October until the end of the year during the normal opening hours of the Palace of the Commonwealth.
The Director General of the National Library Dr Tomasz Makowski welcomed the guests: We use the Palace of the Commonwealth to present the very best of our culture, that which is most worth remembering. Words that are worth recalling, worth passing on. Zbigniew Herbert holds a firm place among this list of the greatest and best. An exhibition is more than just a venue, it is above all the experience of the viewer during the time that they spend there – what happens inside them, what moves them, what takes place that causes something new to be created within them or causes something within them to be strengthened. On the basis of what they see, what they read, culture is created within them – a culture that is permanent and cannot be destroyed. [...] Herbert words and ideas have remained close to our hearts since his death. We have not forgotten his creative works. He is a rare example of a poet who is not condemned to poets’ purgatory after his death: he was, and he remains, important and relevant. He is present with us. Our imagination cannot do without him.
Anna Romaniuk, head of the Manuscripts Department at the National Library, said that Herbert's philosophy of travel was one of delighting in the richness and diversity of the world: It has been my dream to create an exhibition about Herbert the traveller. Now that dream has come true. It was a great challenge to select just a dozen or so manuscripts from the great treasures that he left. I have tried hard to make sure that these treasures do not overwhelm viewers but rather cause them to pause, to stop. Because that is close to Herbert's philosophy of travel: He always said that it was not worth visiting a lot of places, it was better to visit two or three places and pause in each of them, letting ourselves be filled with delight. Herbert’s delight was not about kitsch beauty, it was a delight in the richness and diversity of the world.
Kuba Matyka from MELT IMMERSIVE created the audiovisual setting for the exhibition. He encouraged visitors to immerse themselves in Herbert’s world: To immerse yourself is to sink into something. We want you to sink not just into Herbert's poetry but also into his world and everything surrounding you.
The manuscripts presented in the exhibition tell a story: from Lviv to Warsaw, from the suitcases of the man-without-a-home to the “packing of bags” before the final journey to death, from the delight of freedom in travel to the bitterness of returning to the homeland, from the delight of foreign cities to the longing for a “city that does not exist”, from the joy of the here and now to the melancholy of the past, from euphoric gratitude to final resignation. This is a story about Herbert, but also a universal tale of life, passing and death.
Mr Herbert – the Traveller
30 October – 30 December 2024
Pałac Rzeczypospolitej
pl. Krasińskich 3/5
00-207 Warsaw
Anna Romaniuk – curator
Kuba Matyka, Kamila Staszczyszyn/MELT IMMERSIVE – immersive installation
Łukasz “Szatt” Palkiewicz – music
Aleksandra Toborowicz – graphic design
Intermuseo – display cases
Eidotech Polska – technical installation
NOTICE: SAFETY INFORMATION FOR VISITORS
The exhibition Mr Herbert – the Traveller contains flashing images and contrasts of light and darkness that may cause epileptic seizures, discomfort, disorientation, nausea or head and eye pain in people with epilepsy, photophobia or visual sensitivity. If you experience any symptoms, please discontinue your visit immediately.
The temporary exhibition Mr Herbert – the Traveller was co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and forms part of the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of Zbigniew Herbert's birth.
