The Gnomes of Wroclaw: Blog 117

So marathon over for the moment and up and getting ready to catch my 6.55 Cryinair flight back to London. I'm not sure how Maciej does it but he organised my timetable to make it possible to fit three days into one! I'm tired but excited. Things have progressed with the planning for Teatr Arka's visit to Barking in August - and on top of that I have been invited to direct over here. Very early stages so enought said, except I am really excited by the projects! 

Its too early yet this morning for the trams or Polish birds - and to top it the lightbulb has gone in my room so I am packing my case in the dark! Its a bit heavier going home thanks to some gifts - namely a book about Wroclaw and two gnomes. If you ever get the chance to visit Wroclaw you will certainly meet the gnomes.

Wrocław’s most popular, memorable and iconic attraction is possibly not a

cathedral, not a castle nor a monument, but a legion of little people: Gnomes, or ‘krasnale’. In Wrocław’s city centre these little people are simply ubiquitous, dotting doorways, alleyways and street corners, constantly underfoot but seldom seen by the unobservant. You may well overlook the first dozen or so that cross your path, but inevitably – and often literally - you will stumble upon one of them. 

 I have it on good authority  - from the President's office no less that there are over 200 tiny gnomes dotted all over the town!  They are all busily engaged in a variety of activities from guarding public spaces to passed-out drunk. Beloved by locals and tourists alike, and the object of more photos ( I have taken about 20) than the towering Cathedral, these prolific pranksters have become the unlikely symbol of Wroclaw - which is one of Poland's most beautiful cities.



Although it sounds like little more than a twee tourist gimmick, gnomes have long held a place in Polish folklore, and their current iconic incarnation as symbols of Wrocław actually has a direct correlation to the political climate of the 1980s. Under communism gnomes became the absurdist calling card of the 'Orange Alternative' movement – an underground protest movement that used absurdity and nonsense to stage peaceful, yet subversive protests. Armed with paint cans and led by Waldemar ‘Major’ Fydrych, an artist and art history student at Wrocław University, the group specifically ridiculed the establishment’s attempts to censor public space. 



During communism, any anti-establishment graffiti or public art was quickly painted over by the militia; upon seeing fresh daubs of paint, the pranksters of the Orange Alternative quickly painted over them yet again...with gnomes. As the movement gained popularity, gnomes became inexorably linked with the Orange Alternative and Wrocław, though they soon began appearing in other major Polish cities as well.


As the Orange Alternative graduated to bigger happenings, gnomes began to appear in demonstrations as well. International Children’s Day on June 1, 1988, was celebrated in Wrocław by dozens of locals dressed as gnomes and smurfs, complete with red hats and handkerchiefs, while an anti-Chernobyl protest saw Major Fydrych handing out iconic peaked red gnome hats to passing pedestrians. After the fall of communism in Poland, the gnomes remained a symbol of Wrocław, repurposed by the new regime to be a tribute to the Orange Movement and playful city ambassadors.

The first gnome in its modern statuette form was Papa Krasnal who was placed in 2001 on the corner of ul. Świdnicka and ul. Kazimierza Wielkiego (A-4), near the subway where Orange Alternative demonstrations often took place. Commissioned by Agora (the publisher of the newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza) to celebrate the history of the Orange Alternative, Papa Krasnal remains perhaps the largest of his progeny.

Things really took off in 2005 when local artist Tomasz Moczek - a graduate of the Wrocław Academy of Fine Arts – created five gnomes. The little fellows soon proved so popular that envious local businesses got in on the game contracting other artists to produce more. Some of the most popular include Życzliwek (Well-Wisher Dwarf) who even has his own official holiday (November 21st), blog and Facebook page; Śpioch on the back of the Jaś tenement house on ul. Św. Mikołaja and Więziennik on the parapet of the old prison building on ul. Więzienna . Costing about 4,000zł apiece, each work has become embedded in the hearts of the locals and now has a GPS device embedded in its heart - a necessary precaution after Rzeźnik also disappeared (he has since been recovered and is back at his post on ul. Jatki).

In almost no time at all gnomes have proliferated around Wrocław to the point that now we’re not even certain exactly how many there are. Due to their number and range, it really isn’t possible anymore to find them all on your own but the nice lady in the Presiden't office did give me a map as well as a little gnome. I might start something similar in Barking! 

So home now - and a bit of take up time before I return to Wroclaw in late June as guest of Renata Jasinska (Arka's Artistic Director) for a special awards ceremony at which Arka's work is to be a winner. We also plan to spend time then launching the first stage of the partnership of the two Arcs!  - couldn't have made it up if I wanted to. Thanks to Maciej for his networking and facilitation! 

If you are in the UK - have a great Bank Holiday Monday and if not have a lovely day anyway! 



(Information source: In your Pocket - Essential City Guides)