{"id":20243,"date":"2024-12-31T15:24:21","date_gmt":"2024-12-31T14:24:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.amber.com.pl\/bursztyny-jedyna-taka-wytwornia-rozmowa-z-michalem-myslinskim\/"},"modified":"2026-04-03T19:43:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T17:43:01","slug":"amber-the-one-and-only-factory-interview-with-michal-myslinski","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/aktualnosci\/bursztyny-jedyna-taka-wytwornia-rozmowa-z-michalem-myslinskim\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201eBursztyny\u201d - the only label of its kind - interview with Michal Myslinski"},"content":{"rendered":"

You already have books in your portfolio about the jewellery cooperatives Imago Artis or Rytosztuka, where did you get the idea to take on the Wytw\u00f3rnia Wyrob\u00f3w Bursztyowych in Gda\u0144sk?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This decision is the result of several overlapping circumstances. The first is, of course, that I am, as it were, following the blow by continuing my research into Polish design. I had been thinking about writing a book on the activities of Wytw\u00f3rnia Wyrob\u00f3w Bursztyowych, later known as \u201eBursztyny\u201d, for a long time, especially as I knew that there were partially preserved source materials about it. In the course of collecting them, I realised that it was a very specific cooperative - not like ORNO or Imago Artis or other cooperatives that had always specialised in silver or base metal jewellery. From the very beginning, the cooperative was strongly oriented towards the production of jewellery made of amber, which turned out to be a great success on the one hand, because it was the only one specialising in this, and on the other hand, a weakness, because it was very dependent on the supply of raw amber, which was often in short supply. Fashions changed, but the Studio had to continue and invariably produce jewellery and small accessories made of amber, because such were the top-down decisions and the profile of the Studio. And here we come to the second important reason for the decision to write this book - I was very interested, even \u201edrawn in\u201d by this specificity of Wytw\u00f3rnia. There is another, rather personal reason: I simply like amber very much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you make any other \u201ediscoveries\u201d in the course of writing that surprised you?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

These surprises were at least a few. The first was that Wytw\u00f3rnia \u201eBursztyny\u201d is the oldest Polish cooperative - or rather company, as it only became a cooperative in 1954 - producing jewellery after the war. Production began as early as December 1945 after the German amber factory that had been operating earlier was nationalised. Imagine that in the heavily ruined city of Gdansk, which was waking up to life after the Second World War, less than six months after the official end of hostilities, jewellery production started. Initially it was a continuation of German design, which for me as an art historian is also extremely interesting: political situations, national borders and even nationalities change, but the same amber rings, brooches or figurines are still produced here. This is cultural heritage.
Another surprise for me was reaching for amber substitutes to continue production when natural amber was in short supply for various reasons. Hence the ideas for materials that imitate amber, such as Bakelite, cast resins or polystyrene. Amber was also replaced by substitutes in order to reduce the price of the product. After all, the factory had the task of responding to the needs of society as a whole, offering products that were not only pretty, but also affordable. Today, we almost despise such objects - for today's generations, they are a sign of tastelessness and have no artistic value, which is why they often end up on the rubbish heap. I hope that with this book I can \u201eadd value\u201d to them and save them from a sad end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it really as bad as you say? I am even \u201eassaulted\u201d by articles about how you can now get \u201ecrores\u201d for communist jewellery. I have the impression that jewellery - especially that from old artisan cooperatives - has caught on to a rather strong trend of admiration for communist design.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I'm afraid it's the effect of an information bubble, and there is far less awareness of this than we might think. There are, admittedly, online groups focused on vintage jewellery design, some sales, some self-education, but they number a few hundred, maybe a few thousand people. You have to admit that this is not a lot. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel - knowing that there are people somewhere who delight in such jewellery might cause us to check online to see if it might be of value to someone before we melt something down or throw it away. In all probability, it may turn out that we will still make money on this \u201eworthless\u201d item.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"3368_3.jpg\"
Wisiorek bursztynowy z zawieszeniem ze srebra lub mosi\u0105dzu, sp\u00f3\u0142dzielnia Bursztyny (d. WWB), 1975, (kolekcja Muzeum Gda\u0144ska)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coming back to the surprises, for me it was the information about the Wytw\u00f3rnia's cooperation with Jadwiga and Jerzy Zaremski from Warsaw, which testifies to the very high attention to aesthetics and design of the jewellery created there.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This design and technological awareness was indeed very high from the very beginning. The Zaremskis also started making jewellery just after the war. They were probably recommended to the Wytw\u00f3rnia by the then already operating Office for the Supervision of Production Aesthetics run in Warsaw by Wanda Telakowska. I assume that she was aware of the uniqueness of this factory and realised the need to replace German design with Polish. Besides, Polish amber in the Polish post-war Gdansk - that was extremely important. I am convinced that the co-operation of Wytw\u00f3rnia with Zaremski and BNEP is further proof not only that Polish amber and Polish products were highly valued, but also precisely proof of the strong position of Wytw\u00f3rnia. At that time there were already many cooperatives associating craftsmen making jewellery, but there was only one factory specialising in amber jewellery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you write in the book, many of the Wytw\u00f3rnia's products were not signed - the manufacturer's name and logo were often on the packaging - so today it is difficult to determine unequivocally whether an item actually came from the Wytw\u00f3rnia.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The situation is not made any easier either by the book of patterns preserved in the archives, which contains mainly sketches, often unfortunately inaccurate, without the designer's name and name or test marks. But there is a solution to this: knowing the museum collections held at the Museum of the Earth of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw, the Museum of Amber in Gda\u0144sk or the Castle Museum in Malbork, which undoubtedly come from the Studio, it is easier to reconstruct the stock of designs. So perhaps what we find in our mother's or grandmother's casket will match this resource.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In writing the book you relied mainly on archival material. I found the book a little lacking in \u201estories\u201d that would have evoked more emotion. Was this a conscious intention?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As much as possible. I am an art historian, so my books have to fit into a certain model of a scholarly book, i.e. they have to be based on source material such as various kinds of archives, documents or photographs, and my job is to analyse and discuss them. On the other hand, when interviewing people who once participated in the events described, there is always the danger that someone remembers something subjectively. And this is usually the case. I also avoid such conversations in order not to be suggested by my interviewees' memories. If you talk to Mr X, who tells you that it was nothing important, you sort of inadvertently adopt his way of looking at the event in question. This is why I prefer to discuss with sources, because they allow me to get as close to the truth as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"3368
Silver pendant with amber, Bursztyny cooperative (d. WWB), 1976, (Gdansk Museum collection)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, you quote people you have spoken to. Mainly it is Andrzej Adamski, a former employee of the Studio, now a creator of amber jewellery.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, I refer to him because he gave me very interesting information and passed on valuable contacts. However, he was not such an ordinary participant in events, as he is first and foremost the author of a publication about the Studio in the Amber Magazine published by the International Amber Association (Amber. The Amber Magazine\u201e 2018, no. 42, September (September), pp. 2-6), to which I often refer in my book. Thus, references to Andrew Adamski's account are primarily references to the literature on the subject - i.e. the state of the art - rather than to conversations over coffee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I'm asking about your workshop a bit to weaken the arguments of people who are already getting ready to articulate their claims that you haven't spoken to them, and they know best after all....<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This will not come as a great surprise to me, as there is a slight \u201ebias\u201d with every book. Among other things, this is also the reason why I try to avoid contact with people formerly involved in the events described, because their attitude is always biased. When I started writing a book about Imago Artis ten years ago, I communicated my intentions to everyone, seeking contacts and information. Hardly anyone had time to talk to me at the time, but when the book was published, the same people resented that I had not contacted them. It was the same when collecting material for the book on Rytosztuka. The pattern repeated itself when writing about the Amber Factory, so I decided to rely heavily and almost exclusively on source material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You wrote in the introduction that this is the last of your books in the series. And yet there are still so many jewellery threads to describe....<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the sense that this is the last one, I would not like to continue with the idea of books about craft cooperatives. I feel that another one would already be... simply boring. At the same time, I am, of course, aware that there are still a huge number of jewellery topics worth describing, and I will probably still manage to do some of this. But the rest I will leave for the next generation of art historians or jewellery enthusiasts.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"3368<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

<\/strong><\/strong>
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Micha\u0142 My\u015bli\u0144ski<\/strong> - art historian, since 2001 employed at the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences, in the Studio of Artistic Craftsmanship and Design; author of publications on Polish goldsmithing and gold art design from the 19th to the 21st century.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We often regard jewellery from the communist period as ugly and no longer want to wear it. But maybe when we read the latest book by Micha\u0142 My\u015bli\u0144ski from the Art Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences, \u201ePami\u0105tka znad morza. Wytw\u00f3rnia Wyrob\u00f3w Bursztynowych w Gda\u0144sku. History and Production\u201d, in which he recalls many surprising facts about the jewellery produced there, we will notice its if not beauty, then at least uniqueness.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":20229,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"slim_seo":{"title":"\u201eBursztyny\u201d \u2013 jedyna taka wytw\u00f3rnia \u2013 rozmowa z Micha\u0142em My\u015bli\u0144skim - Amber Portal","description":"We often regard jewellery from the communist period as ugly and no longer want to wear it. But perhaps when we read Michal Myslinski's latest book from the Institute of"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[118],"tags":[],"sekcja":[245],"class_list":["post-20243","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wywiady","sekcja-ludzie-opinie"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20243","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20243"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20243\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20243"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20243"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20243"},{"taxonomy":"sekcja","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sekcja?post=20243"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}