„Meir Ezofowicz” w cyklu ilustracji Andriollego

Abstract

The article concentrates on the issues of the cycle of illustrations by Elwiro Michał Andriolli in Eliza Orzeszkowa’s Meir Ezofowicz as a work of art of the second half of the 19th century, an excellent inter-semiotic translation of literature into the “image rhetoric”, and an example of a turn in the artistic work style – from romanticism, preferred by the artist, to social realism. Wood engravings were made by the graphic artist with both artistry and kindliness towards the author and the subject matter of the novel. Andriolli’s thorough artistic interpretation fills in the book’s unsaid parts, highlights the meanings that the writer was not allowed to touch upon in the novel because of the censorship, e.g. he showed the centuries-old relationships between the Jews and the Polish in the context of the loss of statehood. In the cycle, the graphic artist recorded the collective portrait of the Jewish community, depicted their cultural richness and internal problems (concerning economy, religion and identity).