Marian Eile
(1910-1984)
Painting, photography, journalism, stage design. In 1945 he became the editor‑in‑chief of Przekrój, a weekly magazine where he was also responsible for graphic design and publishing policy. In 1968, as a result of rampant anti‑Semitism, he gave up this function and emigrated to Paris, where he worked producing drawings for France‑Soir. After returning to Poland, he ran an idiosyncratic column, Francis and Others, in the magazine Szpilki. His hallmarks were his light touch, humour and love of the absurd, which he employed wittily and uncompromisingly. He excelled in propagating high culture. He cultivated in his readers a sense of ironic detachment and instilled a curiosity about the world. He created photographic series of pre‑set situations combining into a narrative; one such series is Dali Returns the Visit of the Pendereckis. From the 1950s until the end of his life he painted abstract compositions. With no ulterior motive in mind, he produced ‘fake’ Picasso paintings – he greatly admired the Spanish artist – in order to use them in advertising campaigns in Szpilki.