PREJS Marek

Born on 8 October 1952 in Lodz; son of the cinematographer Wiktor Prejs and Barbara, née Kiliszek. Between 1971 and 1976, he studied Polish philology at the University of Warsaw (UW). He made his debut in 1975 with the article Poezja i rytuał (rzecz o „Hymnach” Jana Kasprowicza) (Poetry and Ritual: On Jan Kasprowicz's Hymny [Hymns]) that appeared in the journal "Przegląd Humanistyczny" (no. 9). From 1976, he was employed at the Institute of Polish Literature at the Faculty of Polish Philology at UW. In 1984, he was awarded a doctoral degree from UW for his dissertation Poezja późnego baroku – główne kierunki przemian (Late Baroque Poetry: The main trajectories changes). He was supervised by Prof. Jadwiga Rytel. In his research, he focused on the history of Polish culture, particularly the culture of the late Baroque period. He was also interested in the phenomenon of exoticism in European civilizations, oral traditions in Old Polish literature, Mannerism and the Rococo. In later years, he developed a study applying communication theory to describe and document Polish Calvary sites. His scholarly articles and reviews appeared in journals including "Miesięcznik Literacki" (1976–1978 and 1980), "Przegląd Humanistyczny" (1978, 1990, 1996, and 2000), "Ricerche Slavistiche" (1993), "Barok" (1995–1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2012, and 2014), and "Rocznik Towarzystwa Literackiego im. Adama Mickiewicza" (1992 and 2003). In 1994, he was appointed to the Editorial Committee and review and discussion Editorial Board of the biannual "Barok. Historia – Literatura – Sztuka". He was awarded a habilitation degree from UW in 1999 for his study Egzotyzm w literaturze staropolskiej. Wybrane problemy (Exoticism in Old Polish Literature: Selected problems). Between 2001 and 2005, he served as director of the Institute of Polish Literature at UW. From 2003 to 2018, he served on the Polish Academy of Sciences' Committee on Polish Literary Studies. In 2005, he transferred to the Institute of Polish culture where he was appointed director of the Centre for Old Polish Culture at the Department of the History of Culture. From 2008, he was a member of the Polish Cultural Studies Association. He also directed research projects including "Humanistyczne modele kultury nowożytnej wobec dziedzictwa starożytnego" (Humanities-based models of modern culture and ancient heritage; 2009–2010) and "Mnemonika i pamięć kulturowa epok dawnych" (Mnemonics and the cultural memory of past epochs; 2012–2014). He was made state-appointed professor in 2011. He became a corresponding member of the Warsaw Learned Society in 2014. He co-organized Warszawskie Czwartki Staropolskie, monthly meetings held on Thursdays for scholars working on Old Polish culture. He was appointed to the Scientific Council of the Institute of Literary Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IBL PAN) in 2023. He received the Prize of the Rector of the University of Warsaw in recognition of his achievements in research and teaching in 2022. He was awarded the Long Service Gold Medal in 2009 and the Medal of the Commission of National Education in 2012. He married the Polish philologist Hanna, née Łuczak, in 1975. They have one daughter, Wirginia. He lives in Warsaw.