Między sztuką a życiem : o ideologii dandyzmu w "622 upadkach Bunga", czyli "Demonicznej kobiecie" Stanisława Ignacego Witkiewicza

Abstract

The debut prose-work by Witkacy carries a large emotional and intellectual load, which is characteristic for a youthful piece of work, but simultaneously it addresses fundamental problems for the historical period and the artist himself. In the light of the events of the revolution of 1905, the role of art was sought once more in social engagement. Aestheticism and isolationism of the author became the object of criticism. It does not change the fact that Witkacy decided to make art and the artist the central problem of his first novel. Dandyism was born in the historical reality ignorant of avant-garde, mass culture, democratization, and relaxing moral standards. In many ways, the ideology of dandyism proved to be identical to the convictions of modernists. First and foremost, because dandyism seemed to be an unrealized ideal of modernism. The Downfalls is the story about consecutive attempts at delineating borders between art and reality, and simultaneously a record of constant overstepping of these barriers, as well as mutual interactions between the sphere of creation and every-day life. The dualism of life and art is the central problem of this novel. Every artist moves between these two spheres. The author, attempting to break the deadlock, reaches for the attitude of the dandy, which, by definition, preconceives transgression (crossing the cultural and social borders, eliminating sex differences in outfit and behaviour, erasing the differences between art and reality by immanent dramatization of the latter). The fact that dandy inspirations are transferred onto his writing technique proves that in Witkacy they are not merely a decoration.