Monument to Danuta Siedzikówna, nom de guerre: Inka

Technique: sculpture

Material: aluminium, brass, granite

Dimensions: 2.6 m

Object: The monument commemorates Danuta Siedzikówna, nom de guerre: Inka. It is a realistic sculpture of a woman in a pillbox hat with a cross-shaped pin, which refers to Siedzikówna’s function as a medical orderly. The figure is reduced to a bust set on a high plinth. The statue is cast in aluminium and brass, the plinth made of granite. Inka’s head is slightly tilted to the left, her facial features are rendered with realistic accuracy and her gently curled hair falls onto her shoulders. She is depicted in a uniform with the collar slightly undone. To the right of the figure, the folds of her dress transform into an abstract, geometric form that features the “Kotwica” Fighting Poland symbol. The figure is set on a granite plinth inscribed with:”Danuta Siedzikówna | 1928–1946 | Nom de guerre ‘Inka’ | Glory to the heroine”. Right next to the base, in the lower part of the plinth, is a bronze plaque with the inscriptions:”Home Army Vilnius | Kmicic | Narocz | Łupaszko”. In the centre is a representation of the Golgotha with three crosses and the number 5 in the middle.

On the back of the plinth is a small silver plaque informing that the statue was erected on the initiative of Archbishop Sławoj Leszek Głódź and the community of Gdańsk Orunia. The donors of the statue are also listed, as well as the author of the sculpture and the date of its unveiling. Initially, the statue was meant to depict Inka in a flowing robe, but this idea was met with criticism: there were accusations of bad taste and associations with images of the Virgin. Instead of an approval for the project, permission was granted for a temporary placement of the statue, meant to remain in force until a building permit was obtained. The statue was entirely funded from donations.

Danuta Siedzikówna was a medical orderly with the 5^th Vilnius Brigade of the Home Army under the command of Mayor Zygmunt Szendzielarz “Łupaszko”. She also acted as a liaison officer, taking part in actions against the NKVD and UB [Security Police in communist Poland]. She was arrested by UB in 1946 in Gdańsk, where she went to get medical supplies. Despite being brutally tortured during interrogation, she did not reveal any information. The Military District Court sentenced her to death. Inka was executed on 28 August 1946 (the sentence was repealed in 1991). In 2015, Inka’s remains were found in an unmarked grave in Gdańsk’s Garrison Cemetery.

Place: The statue is located in a square on Gościnna Street, in the vicinity of Saint John Bosco’s Church. The idea for the monument was coined by Salesians from the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Saint John Bosco parishes in Orunia. Danuta Siedzikówna attended a Salesian school (in the Podlasie region) – this connection probably affected the decision to commemorate her in particular. Apart from placing the monument, municipal services tidied up the area around it and improved the aesthetic value of the surrounding space. Next to the statue is a plaque with a photograph of Danuta Siedzikówna and her biography. This element was destroyed in 2017; the plaque was recreated and is still located near the monument.

Information about the author: Andrzej Renes (b. 1958) is a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw (S. Słonina’s studio). Between 1985 and 1986, he studied at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. His work has been exhibited at many solo and group exhibitions in Poland and abroad. He is the author of many monuments and statuettes, such as the monument to Cardinal Stanisław Wyszyński in Warsaw, monument to Stefan Starzyński in Warsaw, WIKTOR statuette (Polish Television’s award for personality of the year) and KISIEL statuette (Wprost magazine award).

Condition of the object: good

Owner/guardian: ZDiZ

Author of the entry: Kinga Jarocka