It turns out that 600 years after the establishment of economic, political and cultural relations, the two countries still had much to learn about each other. The cultural project offered Poland great opportunities for deep cultural interaction with Turkey, which stands as a country of geopolitical importance not only for Poland, but also for the rest of Europe.
"During this year we have found each other again", admitted Olga Wysocka, deputy director of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute and project manager of Polish Year in Turkey 2014, in an interview with Culture.pl. "The project launched a new dialogue between artists, institutions and cultural specialists", added an influential curator, Beral Madra of Turkish arts and antiques magazine Artam.
How was Polish culture received in Turkey? Here is a review of the cultural programme organized by Culture.pl:
New Sounds From Poland
For several months, Turkish audiences tuned into Polish sounds from a wide range of genres, from classical and jazz to electro-pop and experimental. Some of the most important international stages and concert halls of Istanbul and Izmir featured the Polish masters of modern jazz and avant-garde music, among them Leszek Możdżer, Tomasz Stanko, Kwartludium, Old River, RGG Trio and the Janusz Prusinowski Trio. The dance floor was heated by Polish funk collective Soul Service DJs, whereas Pera Museum hosted seven young artists from Poland for their music series which began with Marcin Masecki’s solo performance and ended with the energetic closing concert by Paula and Karol.
At the end of the closing event, Pera Museum’s concert hall was bursting with applause. The head of the music projects, Michal Hajduk from the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, revealed that:
Polish chords will continue to resonate in Turkey. The cultural programme in the year 2014 aimed to build connections, contacts, and an interest in Polish music. It succeeded. We have already confirmed the first upcoming performances scheduled for the new season in 2015 and 2016.