The Composer’s Garden

The idea of commemorating Fryderyk Chopin by erecting a monument to the composer in a prominent site in Warsaw was mooted in the 1870s by the Warsaw Music Society. From the very outset of the project’s long and complicated history.

Its popularity among the residents of Warsaw and tourists is undoubtedly due to the phenomenon of Fryderyk Chopin, but also important is the success of the choice of the place itself. integrating several fields of the arts – music, sculpture and the art of garden design – with nature.

The surroundings of the Chopin monument were designed as a musical amphitheatre in a garden setting. The auditorium is composed of rose beds laid out around the monument in the form of seating in an amphitheatre

In the early 1960s his idea was masterfully reconstructed and implemented by Longin Majdecki (1925–1997), using his skills as a landscape architect, gardener and conservator of historic garden layouts.

In this way, an egalitarian space, accessible to everyone was created in the Royal Łazienki in Warsaw in order to experience Chopin’s timeless music. The Chopin recitals, famous throughout Warsaw, which are held near the monument every Sunday from mid-May.

This tradition dates back to 1959. Pianists play Chopin’s works in historic buildings of the Royal Łazienki – the Palace on the Isle and the Old Orangery, and the audience listens to them through loudspeakers set up in the garden or via the Internet.
 

This unique open-air concert hall is surrounded by a pathway for walking. While strolling along it, walkers can take in other views of the monument.

The statue of Fryderyk Chopin which towers over the surface of the water is the work of the outstanding sculptor Wacław Szymanowski (1859–1930). The seven-metre high sculpture is made of bronze.

During the summertime recitals, the pedestal on which the sculpture is installed serves as a stage for the pianists.

The monument was erected in the Royal Łazienki in November 1926. However, the project itself was conceived in the early twentieth century, several years before the competition for its realisation was announced in 1908.

Which is how the jury of the 1909 competition assessed the design for the monument. The figure of Chopin does not reflect his external likeness, the face is not a faithful portrait, but an image of the ideal artist-composer.

The timeless character of the representation is also emphasised by the clothing, which does not depict a specific garment. The figure is clad in an undefined material that is seamlessly interwoven with the base and trunk of the tree.

The aim of his sculptural composition was to capture the ephemeral quality of experience and the bond with nature, which was the inspiration for both these fields of art: sculpture and music.

The tree, under which the figure sits, is not only a visual expression of this relationship, but also a symbol of the idealization of the artist-musician, who is depicted in a moment of creative inspiration.

The hand depicted in a characteristic gesture tensed and ready to extract sounds from an absent keyboard, with fingers spread apart seems to echo the shape of the crown of the tree, whose leaves, moved by the wind, will in a moment begin to play music.

The sculpture, like the surrounding greenery, changes under the influence of light. The sketchy, rough texture of the bronze sculpture reflects traces of the tools used to make it and the original clay modelling.

‘This is the idea behind my work: the artist listens to the murmur of the willow tree – nature from which he draws his inspiration, [...] from the singing of Polish fields, forests and rivers, from the Polish soul.’ [Wacław Szymanowski].

The depiction of the tree under which Chopin sits gave rise to a great deal of controversy. Some were of the opinion that the representation of a tree in sculpture was inappropriate, or even unnecessary, especially when the monument is surrounded by nature.

One which conveys spiritual content, but through its abstract, processed form it mediates between the sculptural mass and the changing structure of nature itself.

The expressive sculpture with its soft, light refracting surface and flowing lines is devoid of any frontal arrangement.

The choice of plants in the garden is sparing, but sophisticated, in harmony with the monument’s features.

The designers took care to create interesting combinations by using the shapes, textures and colours of the plants. From June to early September roses bloom in the flowerbeds around the monument, providing the garden’s visitors with fragrant visual impression.

The tiny flowers of the Aspirin and The Fairy varieties burst forth in a froth of pink and white, extending slightly beyond the walls of the regularly spaced beds.

An inscription carved on the pedestal of the monument near the steps on the south side informs us that:
 
MONUMENT RECONSTRUCTED
FROM PUBLIC DONATIONS
OF THE FUND FOR THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE CITY
11 May 1958

The sculpture was reconstructed on the basis of a copy that was found of the composer’s head, a preserved plaster model of the sculpture and pre-war photograph.

The 116-piece monument was ultimately cast and assembled by the state cooperative ‘Brąz Dekoracyjny (Decorative Bronze), i.e. the former ‘Bracia Łopieńscy’ (Łopienski Brothers) bronzing company founded by Grzegorz and Feliks Lopienski.
 

The restoration of the sculptural image of Fryderyk Chopin in Warsaw, dismantled by the German occupying forces, was symbolic, all the more so because the funds for this purpose were raised in a national collection coordinated.

By the capital’s Fund for the Reconstruction of the City. Rebuilding was also possible because, in the new political reality.

The general public’s natural need to regain lost signs of the continuity of tradition and heritage met the demands of the state’s socialist realist cultural policy, in which Fryderyk Chopin was to play an important role.

Today, the garden with Chopin’s monument is one of the most frequently visited places in the city, appreciated for its historical, artistic, and natural qualities.