Philipp Clüver

Technique: granite sculpture

Dimensions: –

Object: Adam Dziejowski’s sculpture of Philipp Clüver forms part of the “Great Citizens of Gdańsk” section of the Gdańsk Open-Air Sculpture Gallery. It was created in 2008 during the Kashubian Granite Sculpture Plein-Air, which took place in the Kashubian Ethnographic Park in Wdzydze Kiszewskie. The open-air workshop was attended by 11 artists representing a generation of masters and a generation of students. All of them were asked to depict famous inhabitants of Gdańsk in granite. A total of 11 sculptures were produced and subsequently placed in Gdańsk’s Ronald Reagan Park. At present, the gallery is composed of ten works, one of them incomplete; Bente Kluge’s statue of Lech Wałęsa has disappeared.

Adam Dziejowski decided to sculpt Philipp Clüver, the Gdańsk-born geographer, traveller and founder of historical geography. The sculpture was placed on a plinth. The artist portrayed Clüver in the form of a bust carved in white stone. The Gdańsk geographer is depicted in a classic way for this type of representation, wearing a dress typical for the epoch, a kontusz. His face is conveyed in accordance with Clüver’s image known from prints, but one ought to emphasize that the sculptural representation is idealized. The back of the sculpture is partially left unworked, preserving the natural texture of the stone.

Place: The “Great Citizens of Gdańsk” Open-Air Sculpture Gallery is located in the park named after President Ronald Reagan, an honorary citizen of Gdańsk. The gallery may be found in the part of the park situated in the Przymorze Wielkie neighbourhood. The 85 ha park stretches along the coastal belt of Gdańsk, encompassing the districts of Przymorze Wielkie, the western part of Brzeźno and the eastern part of the Żabianka-Wejhera-Jelitkowo-Tysiąclecia quarter. This area used to be occupied by temporary allotment gardens and wasteland. The plan to develop the seaside area for recreational purposes was drawn up in 2001 and implemented in stages until 2014. In addition to areas where one can relax, engage in physical activity or make a bonfire, the park was diversified with outflow ponds with living shorelines and nesting islands for waterbirds. In 2008, the Ronald Reagan Park in Gdańsk received a distinction from the Society of Polish Town Planners (TUP), which recognized it as the best managed green space in Poland.

Information about the author: Adam Dziejowski is a sculptor. He graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdańsk. Together with another sculptor, Paweł Sasin, he designed the Monument to Displaced Residents of Gdynia, unveiled on the square in Starowiejska Street, Gdynia.

Condition of the object: no remarks

Owner/guardian: Gdańsk Community Foundation

Author of the entry: Dorota Kucharczyk