60 x 100 NEIGHBOURS. The Women’s voice on the Silesian Uprisings and Plebiscite.
Organiser: Instytut Myśli Polskiej im. Wojciecha Korfantego w Katowicach
Project: The Centre for Regional Heritage of the Institute of Culture in Katowice (now the Korfanty Institute
Coordinator of the exhibition: Dr. Małgorzata Tkacz-Janik
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
The exhibition plays an educational role by showing, through the figures of selected female leaders as well as secondary characters, how important the organic work of women in our region was and how undervalued it still remains. Their merits in the field of bond-building, education or socio-cultural work cannot be overestimated. “60 x 100. SĄSIADKI. With The Women’s Voice on the Silesian Uprisings and the plebiscite” is part of a long-term project, launched in 2019 at the Centre for Regional Heritage of the Institute of Culture in Katowice (now the Korfanty Institute), which aims to introduce female characters into the mainstream of stories about the history of Upper Silesia by juxtaposing heroes from the past with contemporary women, residents of the Silesian Voivodeship. Thanks to its modern form of expression (memes), the publication, which ultimately presents 60 heroines, in an interesting way enriches the story of the fate of women in Upper Silesia. It links their fates and adventures so that, in a symbolic way, they become neighbours united or divided by Silesia.
The exhibition contributes to telling the story of the developing and changing forms of women’s participation in culture, politics, the economy and social life. Each meme is based on historical photographs or other available archival sources, as historical materials on women are often incomplete and difficult to find.
THE EXHIBITION is a “missing story” about Upper Silesian emancipationists, strongwomen, women for whom neither cultural, political, partition, state or language borders were an obstacle to becoming neighbours, to building a female neighbourhood. Different from men’s.
Curator of the exhibition: Dr Małgorzata Tkacz-Janik
Author of memes: Marta Frej
From the beginning of 2020, the exhibition is shown mainly in places where the historical heroines were active. Exhibitions, debates and meetings are to become the background for various educational activities. In addition to the exhibition, a kind of workshop teaching aid entitled “Herstory Notebook for Beginners” has been created. It helps introduce the term “herstory” and brings closer the sense of building a little-known area of Upper Silesian history from scattered women’s microhistories.
The characters on display are:
- Balasowa Albina (1899 – 1977)
- Bramowska Józefa (1860 – 1942)
- Dombkowa Teodora (1874 – 1950)
- Giżycka Janina (1887 – 1937)
- Golaszowa Petronela (1851 – 1935)
- Gruchlikowa Maria (1892 – 1982)
- Hager Karolina (1861 – 1941)
- Jordan-Łowińska Wanda (1900 – 1959)
- Kłuszyńska Dorota (Dora) (1876 – 1952)
- Koniarkowa Zofia (1876 – 1963
- Korfantowa Elżbieta (1882 – 1966)
- Kujawska-Rajda Maria (1893 – 1948)
- Ligoniowa Wanda (1884 – 1953)
- Maciejowska Paulina (Pola) (1899 – 1920)
- Markowa Jadwiga (1885 – 1939/1945)
- Miglancowa Monika (1883 – ?)
- Niegolewska Wiktoria (1872 – 1927)
- Ogórkówna Matylda (1897 – 1940)
- Omańkowska Janina (1859 – 1927)
- Parys Klara (1898 – 1979)
- Pojdowa Florentyna (1883 – ?)
- Rokicka-Niedbalska Antonina (1893 – 1973)
- Różanowiczowa Maria (1886 – 1981)
- Stęślicka Halina (1897 – 1956)
- Szymkowiak Bronisława (1896 – 1975)
- Szyperska Aleksandra (1865 – 1938)
- Wojciechowska-Sołowijowa Halina (1894 – 1984
- Wolnik Aniela (1900 – 1957)
- Zarzycka-Ręgorowicz Olga (1900 – 1986)
- Żnińska Janina (1871 – 1949)