Papal distinctions for Polish artists
PR dla Zagranicy
Roberto Galea
23.06.2015 12:27
Sculptor Wincenty Kućma and composer Krzysztof Penderecki have been given distinctions by the Vatican.
Krzysztof Penderecki (R) and Wincenty Kućma (L) during the medal-giving ceremony on Monday. Photo: PAP/Michał Walczak
The composer Krzysztof Penderecki has received the papal medal ‘Per Artem ad Deum’ (Through Art to God) from the Pontifical Council for Culture.
A citation speaks of his "constant pursuit of God along the paths delineated with the staves and notes."
Born in 1933, Penderecki is among the world’s most renowned composers. Talking to journalists, he recalled that he had started writing sacred music in the late 1950s, during the communist times.
"This award is the crowning of my artistic activity," he said. Penderecki’s vast output includes the St Luke Passion, Dies irae, Magnificat, the Polish Requiem, Seven Gates of Jerusalem and Credo.
The "Per Artem ad Deum" medal also went to Wincenty Kućma, the sculptor and designer of church interiors, whose work can be seen in over sixty churches in Poland, Russia and Belarus, and the Herder Publishing House, one of Germany’s leading publishers of theological books as well as of the writings of such figures as Benedict XVI, the Dalai Lama and Elie Wiesel.
The presentation ceremony was held in Kielce, southern Poland, during the annual Sacroexpo trade fair for church construction and furnishings and religious art.
The Pontifical Council for Culture, which awards the medal, was founded in 1982 upon the initiative of Pope John Paul II. Past recipients of the medal include the composers Wojciech Kilar and Ennio Moricone and the film director Krzysztof Zanussi. (mk/rg)