| Archival Documentation and Photography and Cinomatography Department |
 |
 |
| Wednesday, 03 June 2009 15:20 | |||
|
REPORT 2007 The main tasks realised by the Archival Documentation and Cinematography Department in 2007: 1. INVENTORY AND DIGITALISATION OF THE COLLECTION OF WORKS GATHERED BY MUSEUM CENTRE FOR RESEARCH AND DOCUMENTATION OF THE PONTIFICATE OF JOHN PAUL II IN ROME The Institute engages in the stock take and digitalisation of the collection of works gathered in the Museum Centre for Research and Documentation of the Pontificate of Pope John Paul II which resides in the Polish Home in Rome. The majority of the collection of the Centre consists of gifts presented to the Holy Father by Polish pilgrims during their audiences and the apostolic travels. They include: paintings, sculptures, numismatics, fabrics, graphics and other valuable historic souvenirs. A team supervised by the Director of the Centre in Rome, Father Dr Jan Główczyk, is engaged in the realisation of this undertaking. The team consists of: an art historian, a historian, an IT specialist and a photographer. The work was carried out using a computer program for evidencing museum objects - MUSNET. The work is being overseen by Marzena Zielonka in Rome. The specifications have been grouped till now in two databases: numismatic museum pieces and artistic-historic museum pieces. It is planned to deliver 1750 specifications to the Institute. The Centre for Documentation of the Pontificate of John Paul II has delivered 1850 specifications of exhibits together with their photographs (240 in the "Artistic-Historic museum pieces" database and 1610 in the "Numismatic museum pieces" database. The transferred materials have been archived on three independent types of data media. The collections has been divided into the following sections:
2. DONATIONS FROM PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS All souvenirs from private individuals who have decided to donate them to the Institute are archived. Our most generous donator is Father Prelate Bogusław Bijak, who has given us Papal medals, identification cards and entry cards for the Holy Masses, celebrated by John Paul II during His pilgrimage to Poland, and also souvenirs from meetings with the Holy Father with the youth in Toronto in 2002. The numismatic collections recollect mainly the Papal pilgrimages to His Homeland and subsequent anniversaries of the Pontificate. 3. ARCHIVING COMPETITION WORKS. The Department archives works sent in by participants of "Bards of the Great John Paul" and other contests and campaigns organised by the Institute. 4. OTHER ACTIVITIES The Department took an active role in organising the National Shrine of God's Providence exhibition of photographs taken by Andrzej Pawliszewski, "Between Heaven and Earth". We have established co-operation with Polish Airlines "LOT" who have in their archives an abundant collection of photographs and museum exhibits dedicated to the person of the Holy Father. The effect of this co-operation was the joint organisation of an exhibition of photographs by Andrzej Pawliszewski titled "Between Heaven and Earth", documenting the Holy Father's visit to Poland in 1999. In November there was an inventory of sashes, name plates and banners from wreathes and bouquets which were laid during the funeral of Father Prelate Zdzisław Peszkowski (a total of 134 items). Furthermore, files containing the inventory of sashes and folders with their photographs were stored onto CDs. In December the archiving of 500 photographs given by Father Prelate Bogusław Bijak from the I and II pilgrimages of John Paul II to Poland began, together with photographs documenting the Father Prelat's stay in Rome in 1979.
REPORT 2006 The Institute has undertaken the project to stock take and digitalize the collection of works gathered in the Museum of the Center of Research and Documentation of the Pontificate of Pope John Paul II which resides in the Polish Home in Rome. The majority of the collection consists of gifts presented to the Holy Father by Polish pilgrims during their audiences and the Pope's travels. The presents include: paintings, sculptures, numismatics, fabrics, graphics and other valuable souvenirs. A team supervised by the Director of the Center, Father Dr Jan Główczyk undertook this project. The team consisted of: an art historian, a computer scientist and a photographer. The inventory was based on the computer program MUSNET. While stocktaking the photographic documentation of objects made of coal was done. Things, like: cups, vases, chalices, plates were photographed. Photos of numismatics, especially commemorative medals (released on the occasion of the Pope's travels), emitted by Italy's national mints were also taken. The inventory documentation contains information about gifts' donors (place and date and circumstances of offering of the present). The data set contains information about displays during which they were exhibited as well as their history. So far 273 inventory cards have been created. In Rome, the representatives of the Institute have established contacts and explained the goals and actions of the Institute to people and institutions engaged in the documentation of the pontificate and the life of John Paul II in Italy. An important outcome of the undertaken action was the acquisition of the important books for the newly created Library of the Institute from the Center of Research and Documentation of the Pontificate of Pope John Paul II.
Also, a contact with the Papal Institute of Church Studies (PISK) has been established. As the outcome, in March 2007, the Institute of Pope John Paul II will receive a part of the book collection from PISK. The new Library will also be enriched by donations from Pontificio Istituto Ecclesiastico Polacco, directed by Father Ryszard Kaszak. The rules of the cooperation with Mr. Giuseppe Sole, the owner of the Italian bookstore "Sole", about receiving Italian publications concerning John Paul II, the Catholic Church and other church documents for the Library, were established. Talks about close cooperation with the Polish Institute in Rome have been initiated. Their main objectives are: providing guide books, books, catalogues, as well as co-funding of publications and collaboration in organizing exhibitions connected with the person of John Paul II. One of most important events has been the establishment of the contact with a monthly magazine Totus Tuus published by the Office of the Postulation of the Cause for the Beatification and Canonization. The magazine follows all the activities undertaken for the cause of canonization of John Paul II. Its publishing will cease the day John Paul II is made Saint. The magazine publishes all the information about John Paul II, his pontificate, teaching, and also letters and prayers left by pilgrims at his tomb. The publisher donated a complete set of magazines in Polish and a few copies in Italian.
Contact with Mr Włodzimierz Rędzioch, an employee of L'Osservatore Romano, has brought the opportunity of acquiring an electronic version of archival copies of the magazine from 1861 to 2005. The Institute also received a record of publications edited in the series Quaderni de L'Osservatore Romano. Talks with Mr Antoni Bellanton from Association Sindome concerning the possibility of the cooperation in common projects concerning John Paul II teaching have been initiated. Among the projects, carried out in the Mazovian Voivodeship, special attention should be paid to the project of not only the creation of the photographic documentation of the Holy Father's keepsakes, mostly sculptures (statues, busts, relief, plaques etc),.but also so called vivid monuments of John Paul II - showing the Pope's influence on people's attitude toward the sick, the suffering and the needy. This documentation will result in a series of reports from hospices, schools and other institutions. Currently, the data set of these objects in Mazovian Voivodeship is being created and will be finished in 2007. In the future the project will involve other regions of Poland. All the photographs will be presented in a special exhibition. Later, they will be published in a photograph album that will be used for promotional goals. The Institute received a great number of archival materials: medals, photographs, souvenirs, posters, invitations and other documents of social life connected with the teaching of John Paul II (e.g. 14 papal medals). Over three thousand photographs from the Pope's visits to homeland from 1979 and 1983 have been collected. Plans for 2007 Further undertakings aiming at the development of existing contacts and establishing new relations in the circles engaged in the documentation of the spiritual legacy of the Holy Father in Italy and Vatican (Radio Vaticana, church and university libraries, Roman Foundation named after Marg. J.S. Umiastowska) are planned. The project connected with the digitalization of the collection is being continued. In the Mazovian region and gradually in the other regions of the country, the documentation of the keepsakes left by the Holy Father and retrieving of vivid monuments of John Paul II which preserve his teaching, will be continued.
|
