Visual text or "words-in-freedom" from Futurism through concrete poetry to electronic literature
Authors:   University of Łódź, Pawłowska Aneta Joanna 
Published: June 2019

The aim of the article is to present the changes which the literary text with visual values is subjected to. As the starting point of our intellectual considerations we chose the turning-point between 19th and 20th century, when as a result of artistic actions of such avant-garde artists as Guillaume Apollinaire, Stéphane Mallarmé, dramatic changes in the perception of the semantic meaning of poety occurred, which brought about the situation in which the visual structure of the text became quite essential. In the beginning of the 20th century the need for the necessary changes within the scope of literature and visual arts, were noticed by such diverse artists connected with Futurism, as Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, who advocated in his „one-day” publications and manifestoes the slogans which were spelled out in various different languages parole in libertá – with „words-in- freedom”. In Poland a similar role was played by such artists as Brunon Jasieński (1901-1938), Stanisław Młodożeniec (1895-1959), Alexander Watt (1900-1967), Anatol Stern (1899-1968) and Tytus Czyżewski (1880-1945), who presented a multi-sensual reality, in the poetry with „mechanical instinct”. The aim of the article is to present the changes which the literary text with visual values is subjected to. As the starting point of our intellectual considerations we chose the turning-point between 19th and 20th century, when as a result of artistic actions of such avant-garde artists as Guillaume Apollinaire, Stéphane Mallarmé, dramatic changes in the perception of the semantic meaning of poety occurred, which brought about the situation in which the visual structure of the text became quite essential. In the beginning of the 20th century the need for the necessary changes within the scope of literature and visual arts, were noticed by such diverse artists connected with Futurism, as Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, who advocated in his „one-day” publications and manifestoes the slogans which were spelled out in various different languages parole in libertá – with „words-in- freedom”. In Poland a similar role was played by such artists as Brunon Jasieński (1901-1938), Stanisław Młodożeniec (1895-1959), Alexander Watt (1900-1967), Anatol Stern (1899-1968) and Tytus Czyżewski (1880-1945), who presented a multi-sensual reality, in the poetry with „mechanical instinct”. A vivid interest concerning the modern typography in the period which took place immediately after the end of the First World War and during the interwar period of the Great Avant-Garde, was shown by various artists who were closely related to Dadaism and the Polish art group called „a.r”. Here a special mention is desrved by the pioneer accomplishments in the range of lettering craft and the so-called „functional printing” of the famous artist Władysław Strzemiński (1893-1952). The next essential moment in the development of the new approach to the synesthesia of the printed text and fine arts is the period of the 1960s of the 20th century and the period of „concrete poetry” (Eugen Gomringer, brothers Augusto and Haroldo de Campos from Brazil, Öyvind Fahlström). In Poland, the undisputed leader of this movement was the artist Stanisław Dróżdż (1939-2009), the originator of the so-called „conceptual-shapes”. In the 21st century, the emanation of actions which endevour to join and link closely poetry with visual arts is the electronic literature, referred to as digital or html. Artists associated with this formation, usually produce their works only by means of a laptop or personal computer and with the intention that the computer the main carrier / medium of their work. Among the creators of such works of art, it is possibile to mention such authors of the young generation as Robert Szczerbiowski, Radosław Nowakowski, Sławomir Shuty.