MITZNER Piotr

Born on 19 May 1955 in Warsaw; son of the columnist, satirist and journalist Zbigniew Mitzner (pseud. Jan Szeląg), and Larysa, née Zajączkowska, a novelist who published thrillers and works for younger readers using the pen-name Barbara Gordon. In 1956, he and his family moved to Podkowa Leśna, outside Warsaw, where he attended the local primary school. He made his debut in 1968 with a letter to the editors of the specialist numismatics magazine "Biuletyn Numizmatyczny", that was published in the correspondence section (no. 38) as Jak dziwne bywają losy numizmatów (The strange fates of numismatists). Between 1968 and 1969, using the pseudonym Korsarz, he provided illustrations for his mother's novel Na tropie „Korsarza” (In Search of the "Corsair") that was serialized in the periodical "Przyjaciel Młodego Spółdzielcy". In 1970, he became a pupil at the Tadeusz Kościuszko Grammar School in Pruszków. In 1972, he was forced to change schools after being caught distributing illegal magazines that he had self-published – "Wspólnota" ("Community"; three issues appeared) and "Czterdziestu Męczenników" ("Forty Martyrs"; over a dozen issues appeared). He subsequently studied at the Grammar School in Milanówek, completing his advanced secondary education in 1974. He made his debut as a poet in 1972 with the poem Zamknięte drzwi (Closed doors), which appeared in the daily "Kurier Polski" (no. 124; under the name Paweł Mitzner) in the column Kramik poetycki (The Little Poetry Shop), which was edited by Jerzy Zagórski. Between 1972 and 1975, he wrote lyrics for the band "Trapiści", which performed at St Christopher's church in Podkowa Leśna. He started painting in 1973 (producing his last work in 1992). In 1998, a retrospective was held at the Parawany Gallery in Podkowa Leśna. From 1974 to 1976 he and Krzysztof Jaworski organized poetic happenings in Warsaw and Podkowa Leśna. In 1974, he started studying Polish philology at the University of Warsaw (UW), before moving to the Faculty of Theatre Studies at the State Theatre School (PWST) in Warsaw in 1975. He graduated with a master's degree in 1979. His master's thesis, Oświetlenie w teatrach warszawskich (Lighting in Warsaw's theatres), was supervised by Prof. Zbigniew Raszewski. He made his debut as a translator in 1976 with a translation from Russian into Polish of Petrus Brovka's poem Warszawie (For Warsaw). His translation appeared in the periodical "Przyjaźń" (no. 3). From 1979 to 1981 he was a repertoire consultant at the Powszechny Theatre in Warsaw. In 1979, he wrote and directed the plays Krzyżewski and Ameryka odkrywa Amerykę (America discovers America) at the alternative Podkowa Theatre. From 1979 to 1982 he was a member of the editorial board of the yearbook "Teatr Muzyczny" (three issues appeared in total), which was published by the Muzyczny Theatre in Gdynia. He continued to write literary works and journalistic pieces, publishing poems, articles and theatre reviews, as well as works and correspondence from the underground "Wisła" archive that his father Zbigniew Mitzner had put together. Pieces appeared in "Za Wolność i Lud" (1975; including articles using the pseudonym (p.m.)), "Kultura" (1976), "Itd" (1977), "Pamiętnik Teatralny" (1977, 1979, 1981, 1983, and 1988), "Poezja" (1977-78 and 1981; including notes using the initials P.M.), "Dialog" (1978, 1981, 1986-87 and 1999), "Literatura" (1979 and 1981), "Nowy Wyraz" (1979-80), "Meander" (1980-83; serving as its regular theatre reviewer), "Odra" (1981 and 1987), "Więź" (1984 and 1987-88), "Powściągliwość i Praca" (1985 and 1988), "Russka Mysl" (Paris; 1985-86; including an article published using the pseudonym: Paweł Jankowski), "Kronika Warszawy" (1986 and 1988), and "Literatura Ludowa" (1986). He also wrote for the following periodicals that were published outside the reach of state censorship: "Arka" (1983), "Nowy Zapis" (1983; including a bibliographical registry of books complied together with W.W. Wiśniewski, published under the joint pseudonym Bibliofil), "Karta" (1984-89; including pieces published as: Jan Pławski; he was a member of the editorial board to 1997), "Arka" (Wybór) (1985-87; likewise as: Jan Pławski), and "Kultura Niezależna" (1986). From April to September 1980 he and K. Jaworski ran Oficyna Wydawnicza P.T. Spółka Poetów w Podkowie Leśnej, a poetry publishing house based in Podkowa Leśna operating outside the reach of state censorship. It published eleven volumes, the majority of which featured Mitzner's illustrations (the publishing house's name was revealed in the final, eleventh volume of the series). The initiative was relaunched in 1990 and operated until 1999. Between 1981 and 1989, he was chief literary editor at the independent publishing house Wydawnictwo Krąg, joining its board from December 1981. In 1981, he founded the publishing house's almanac, „Silva Rerum” (two issues appeared; an editorial appeared in 1981 under the name Redakcja [Editorial Board]), which he edited until 1982. Between 1981 and 1984, he was a doctoral researcher at the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IS PAN). Between 1981 and 1983, he was a member of the Polish Journalists Association (SDP) and of the Youth Circle of the Warsaw Branch of the Polish Writers' Union (ZLP). From April to August 1982 he was interned at a prison in the Białołęka district of Warsaw. In 1984/85 he was literary and repertoire consultant at the Polski Theatre in Szczecin. During this period he also worked at the Anna and Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz Museum in Stawisko, remaining in post until 1986. In 1985, he was awarded a doctoral degree from IS PAN for his dissertation Postać Tadeusza Kościuszki w teatrze polskim 1803-1983 (The Figure of Tadeusz Kościuszko in Polish Theatre, 1803-1983), which was supervised by Prof. Zbigniew Raszewski. From 1985 to 1989 he was editor-in-chief of the yearbook "Rocznik Podkowiański" (three issues appeared), which was published outside the reach of state censorship. Between 1986 and 1992, he was literary director of the Stefan Jaracz Theatre in Lodz, also editing numerous programmes accompanying performances. In 1987, he co-founded Archiwum Wschodnie (the Eastern Archive), which collects testimonies of Poles who faced repression in the USSR. From 1987 to 1989 he was employed as assistant at the Faculty of Theatre Studies at the State Theatre School (PWST) in Warsaw. He travelled to Paris in November 1987 on a month-long fellowship awarded by the independent Social Committee for Science (Społeczny Komitet Nauki). He joined the Polish Writers' Association (SPP) in 1989. From 1990 to 1991 he was deputy editor-in-chief at the Interim publishing house. Between 1990 and 1993, he contributed the regular column segment Archiwum wschodnie (Eastern Archive) to Radio Free Europe. In 1990 he received the prize of the Polcul Foundation (Australia). He continued to collaborate with the quarterly "Karta" until 2008 (likewise ontributing as P.M). It was initially an underground publication, appearing outside the reach of state censorship, before emerging in 1991 as a legal publication on the twentieth-century history of Poland and East-Central Europe. His contributions included editing the memoirs of gulag prisoners and of opposition activists, as well as translations from Russian. He also collaborated with the Karta Center in Warsaw. He joined the international historical, educational, charitable and human rights society Memorial (International Memorial), initiating and coordinating collaborations with the society, including several international conferences on twentieth-century history. He also led the international research programme Wspólne miejsce – Europa Wschodnia (Common ground – Eastern Europe), while from 1992 to 2007 he edited the Russian journal "Karta" that was published by the Memorial society in Ryazan. From 1993 to 1999 he was director of the cultural centre Koło Podkowy in Podkowa Leśna, with the centre winning first prize in the Małe Ojczyczny: Tradycja dla Przyszłości Foundation Competition (Small Homelands: Traditions for the Future). He became a regular contributor to the literary journal "Zeszyty Literackie" in 1994 (including the regular column Jak znalazł [Perfect fit] from 2009) and the theatre monthly "Dialog" in 1999 (including regular columns: from 2000 to 2003 Rozmowy z hydrą [Interviews with a hydra], and 2005 to 2006 Sen wariata [A madman's dream]). His poems, articles, columns, reviews and translations from Russian appeared in newspapers, periodicals and journals including "Kultura" (Paris; 1989 and 1997), "Odra" (1990 and 2000), "Pamiętnik Teatralny" (1990 and 2010), "Kresy" (1993, 2005-06, and 2009), "Podkowiański Magazyn Kulturalny" (1993-2014), "Krzywe Koło Literatury" (1997), "Kwartalnik Artystyczny" (1997, 2001, 2008, 2011, and 2016), "Rzeczpospolita" (1997, 2000-01, and 2003), "Tygodnik Powszechny" (1997, 2005, and 2007), "Koło" (1998), "Zeszyty Historyczne" (Paris; 1998 and 2007-08), "Gazeta Wyborcza" (1999, 2000, 2008, 2014, and 2016), "Więź" (1999, 2001, and 2011), "Pracownia" (2000-01), "Teatr" (2000, 2002, 2005, and 2007), "Literatura na Świecie" (2001), "Topos" (2004, 2007, and 2010; including the volume of poetry Słowa ruchome [Moving words] no. 2-3, 2016), "Teksty Drugie" (2005-07), "Twórczość" (2006-07, 2010, 2013-14, and 2018), "Przegląd Polityczny" (2009), "Colloquia Litteraria" (2012, 2015-16), "Pamiętnik Literacki" (2012 and 2014), "Miasteczko Poznań" (2016), "Nigdy Więcej" (2016), "Konteksty" (2017), and "Ruch Muzyczny" (2018). His poetry also appeared in international periodicals, including the Russian-based "Utro" (1996), "Arion" (2002), "Zvezda" (2009), and "Kovčeg" (2013); the Belarusian periodical "Kalos" (1998); the Kosovan publication "Jeta e Re" (2002), the French periodical "Poésie" (2004); the Lithuanian-based "Naujoji Romuva" (2007); the Czech publication "Protimluv" (2011 and 2013); and in the Slovenian periodical "Apokalipsa" (2012). In 1998, he moved from Podkowa Leśna to Warsaw. Between 1999 and 2000, he was employed as a research assistant at the Institute of Applied Social Sciences at UW, while from 1999 he worked at the Faculty of Humanities at the Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University (UKSW) in Warsaw where he was associate dean from 2000 to 2008. In 2008/09 he was director of the university's Institute of Polish Philology. His research focused on Polish literature after 1918, particularly the biography and work of Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz and war literature, and Polish-Russian literary relations. Between 1999 and 2000, he was a member of the jury of the Małe Ojczyzny: Tradycja dla Przyszłości Foundation Prize. In 2000, he was made deputy editor of the Warsaw-based Russian-language monthly "Novaya Polsha", where he also published articles and poetry. In 2001, he became a member of the Polish PEN Club, also serving as a member of its Board as treasurer from 2012. In 2003, he was awarded a habilitation degree from the Faculty of Philology at the University of Wroclaw for his study Na progu. Doświadczenia religijne w tekstach Jarosława Iwaszkiewicza (At the Threshold: Religious experiences in the texts of Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz). In 2004, he was appointed associate professor at UKSW. Between 2004 and 2008, he served on the Commission for School and University Education at the Committee on Literary Studies (KNoL) of the Polish Academy of Sciences. In 2006, he was appointed to the Board of the Borussia Foundation, joining the Editorial Board of the journal "Borussia" in 2008. In 2007, he became a member of the jury of the Cyprian Kamil Norwid National Poetry Competition, while in 2012 he was appointed to the jury of the Ryszard Kapuściński Prize. In 2008, he joined the Inter-faculty Commission for Polish Diaspora Studies of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences (PAU). In 2010, he was appointed to the Scientific Council of the Memorial Society in St Petersburg. In 2012, he joined the editorial board of the quarterly "Tekstualia", where he also published articles, poems and translations from Russian and Ukrainian. That year he also became editor of the publication series Biblioteka Zapomnianych Poetów (Library of Forgotten Poets) published by the Grodzka Gate – NN Theatre Centre in Lublin. He was made state-appointed professor in 2013, the same year that he joined the editorial college of "Vestnik LGU: Filosofia", a journal published by the Pushkin Leningrad State University in St Petersburg. Between 2013 and 2017, he ran the international research project, W poszukiwaniu misji emigracji. Polsko-rosyjskie kontakty literackie 1919-1989 (In search of émigrés' mission: Polish-Russian literary contacts, 1919-1989). He twice received the UKSW Rector's Prize (2004 and 2012) in recognition of his scholarly achievements. He was awarded the Józef Czapski Prize of the Journal "Zeszyty Literackie" in recognition of his essay-writing (2012). He was made Meritorious Activist of Culture in 2001. In 2005, he was awarded the Silver Cross of Merit and in 2009 the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta. He married the editor Katarzyna Madoń in 1983, divorcing in 2001. They had two children together: the philosopher and Arabic studies scholar Anna (b. 1985; married name: Izdebska), and the NGO activist Marcin (b. 1987). In 2001, he married the translator Iwona Libucha, divorcing in 2013. He lives in Warsaw.