Kazimierz Zgórecki, Polish butcher shop in France, photography, 1930's, © Musée national de l'histoire et des cultures de l'immigration
The first grand exhibition entirely dedicated to the history of Polish emigration to France highlights Polish contributions to the economic, political, intellectual and artistic spheres of their adopted nation
"Polonia. Des Polonais en France depuis 1830 / Polonia. Poles in France from 1830" recalls a number of symbolic places connected with the Polish presence in France (such as the Île Saint-Louis, the coal mines of Nord-Pas-de-Calais, the base of the iron industry in Lorraine and of potasssium in Alsace, a swell as the farming areas of Eastern and Central France...) but also the lives of individual men and women - respected soldiers and politicians, activists and conservatives, scientists and artists, or simply everyday individuals and labourers...
For Poles France has long been a favorite destination for reasons both historical and philosophical. France, the land of Enlightenment and Human Rights, was also the home of Napoleon, who during his many military campaigns was able to unite Polish soldiers. Napoleon promoted also the creation of the Duchy of Warsaw in 1807 on the territories taken from Prussia.
Between the two world wars, massive immigration of farm workers and miners resulted in establishing Polish community as the second biggest foreign minority in France after Italians. After World War 2, the inflow of migrants to France followed a more sporadic pattern - synchronizing with major political upheavals that were shaking the East Block and culminated with the emerging of the Solidarity movement.
The exhibition is divided into three sections:
"Paris, the Second Capital of Poland" focuses on those moments in history when the French capital became a major centre of Polish culture, a place where Polish political elites, intelligentsia, and military authorities constantly flowed in bringing with them the hope of liberating their country from the tutelage of, first, neighboring powers and, then, the Communist regime.
"Petites Polognes minières et isolats ruraux" explores the world of work and workers' lifestyles. The inter-war period was marked by the massive influx of contract workers which followed the signing of migration agreements between France and Poland in September 1919. Isolated in agriculture, Poles formed large settlements in mining areas, in villages and cities where they were often the majority. This phenomenon went on to be known as "little mining Poland", the term describing a process of the reconstruction of a whole Polish universe as Poles established their own schools, printed Polish newspapers, and took part in religious and social life of the community. The question of the return, whether real (Poles started returning to their homeland in the aftermath of the economic crisis which hit the world economy in 1930s, one can also speak of the 'voluntary' returns upon the call of the communist regime in 1946-1948) or fantasized, is also posed.
The final section traces the fates of scholars and artists from France and Poland. Largely devoted to art works, paintings and sculptures, this part of the exhibition showcases works by more than thirty Polish artists. Through the theme of landscape the visitor can discover for himself the presence of Polish artists within the artistic developments of the time: the show highlights several "schools" including Impressionism, the school of Pont-Aven, fauvisme etc... The show also addresses the commitment of Polish men and women to the French culture, as perpetuated by the image of Marie Curie and her discoveries on radiology, which were originally made to help out the wounded soldiers in the World War I.
The exhibition features documents and archival materials, photographs, objects, paintings, sculptures, pieces of music, sound and film materials.
On March 5, Yom (France) & Cufunkt (Poland) perform a contemporary Klezmer concert at the Cité nationale de l'histoire de l'immigration.
Curators: Ewa Bobrowska, Marie Chominot.
The exhibition runs from March 2 through August 28, 2011. Cité nationale de l'histoire de l'immigration
Palais de la Porte Dorée
293, avenue Daumesnil
75012 Paris
Source: www.histoire-immigration.fr