(born 1965) – poet, prose writer, critic, literary historian, professor at the Department of Contemporary Literature at the Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw.

The poet's characteristic achievement is the "effect of a disturbed form" (author's wording). It has questioned fixed phrases, split idiomatic expressions, and the overall message of this original lyricism opens up more possibilities for interpretation than just an optimistic vision of the eternal order of the human universe. A world without controversy may turn out to be wishful thinking fiction. For in the subtext, there is a danger of radical revaluation of the cheerful image of reality as an auto-ironic parenthesis of a dream. The motifs of a family, a house, a close neighbourhood gain the rank of a universal topic, whose vitality and permanence depend on constantly repeated acts of trust in the created good.

Most importantly, Kudyba is known for his poetry, but he also published short stories in magazines, and recently, his novel Nazywam się Majdan (“My Name is Majdan”), has been published in the series Biblioteka "Więzi", in Warsaw 2015. Krzysztof Dybciak has a very high opinion of this publishing position: "My Name is Majdan, which builds an original artistic language and a model of cultural behaviour, is the most precious gift of Poland to Ukraine"("Arcana" 2016, no. 1-2); in the academic elucubration of the eponymous Petro Majdan, he recognises a parody of postmodern stylistic mannerism, i.e. a manifestation of critical thinking of a young Ukrainian.

Kudyba, a literary historian, has studied, inter alia, the works and reception of Cyprian Norwid, the poetic and essayist works of Janusz Pasierb, Zbigniew Herbert, Czesław Miłosz, Tadeusz Różewicz, as well as current literature. He thoroughly reviews new titles in literature, having already produced more than a hundred critical literary publications. Being active also in the local, Nowy Sącz community, he published an anthology of local meditation poetry entitled Stając się łąką (“Becoming a Meadow”). He provided an afterword for several poetry books. Together with Przemysław Dakowicz, he has created an anthology of the works of poets related to the bimonthly “Topos”, entitled Konstelacja „Toposu” (“Constellation of ‘Topos’“, 2015) and accompanied by an afterword by Jarosław Ławski. Together with Maria Madejowa and Anna Mlekodaj, he co-edited the post-conference volume, a collective work Orkan czytany dzisiaj (“Orkan Read Today”, 2003). One of Kudyba's interests is the methodology of teaching the Polish language. He spoke in the "Polonistyka" magazine, a monthly for teachers, and wrote a book intended for schools: Język polski: pisanie własnego tekstu – analizy literackie (“Polish language: writing one’s own text - literary analyses”).

The author of Gorce Pana (“Lord’s Gorce”) publishes his poems in such magazines as: "Topos", "Więź", and "Arcana". As a literary critic, Wojciech Kudyba collaborates primarily with the bimonthly “Topos”, but also with “Fronda Lux”, “Znak”, and other numerous national or regional titles. His scientific articles are published in such magazines as “Colloquia Litteraria”, “Pamiętnik Literacki”, “Teksty Drugie”, “Ruch Literacki”, “Roczniki Humanistyczne”, “Ethos”, “Studia Norvidiana”, and “Religious and Sacred Poetry”. Essays on cultural and spiritual issues are published in the magazines “Zeszyty Karmelitańskie”, “Pastores”, and “Via Consecrata”. They represent the current of tolerant Christianity, open to the complex ethical challenges of the world of the 20^th and 21^st centuries. The poet bridges various aesthetic, ideological, and intellectual options. At the same time, both scientific and literary works of Wojciech Kudyba can be distinguished by the highest culture of words and a recognisable, clear tone, oriented towards undeniable values.

He has published the following poetry books: Wierność w małej rzeczy („Faithfulness in a Little Things”, 1994), Wiersze dla księdza Jana i innych bliskich osób (“Poems for Father Jan and Loved Ones”, 1999), Tyszowce i inne miasta (“Tyszowce and Other Cities”, 2005), Gorce Pana (“Lord’s Gorce”, 2007), Ojciec się zmienia (“Father is Changing”, 2011), W końcu świat (“Finally, the World”, 2014).

His books on literature are a sequence - from the study of the work of masters to the practical application of the developed evaluation criteria in the analyses of new and most recent literary phenomena, "to recreate Christian speech anew.” Cypriana Norwida mówienie o Bogu (“Cyprian Norwid's Talking About God”, 2000), Rana, która przyzywa Boga. O twórczości poetyckiej Janusza St. Pasierba (”A Wound That Calls Upon God. On the Poetic Work of Janusz St. Pasierb”, 2006), Wiersze wobec Innego (”Poems to the Other”, 2012), Generacja źle obecna (“Generation Badly Represented”, 2014).

The poet is a laureate of numerous poetry competitions and awards: R.M. Rilke Award in Sopot (second prize), K.I. Gałczyński Award in Pranie in Masuria region (first prize), J.S. Pasierb Foundation Award in Warsaw for essays and poetry (2005), Józef Mackiewicz Award (2008) for Lord’s Gorce. His works have been published in the literary press in Poland and abroad. They have been translated into German and other European languages. He lives and works in Warsaw and Nowy Sącz.

– Dorota Heck

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Poetry

• Wierność w małej rzeczy, Lublin  1994.
• Zwykły porządek rzeczy, Nowy Sącz 1997.
• Wiersze dla księdza Jana i innych bliskich osób, Nowy Sącz 1999.
• Tyszowce i inne miasta, Sopot 2005.
• Gorce Pana, Sopot 2007.
• Ojciec się zmienia, Sopot 2011.
• W końcu świat, Sopot 2014.

Prose

• Nazywam się Majdan, Warsaw 2015

Critical and literary works

• „Aby mowę chrześcijańską odtworzyć na nowo...” Norwida mówienie o Bogu, Lublin 2000.
• Rana która przyzywa Boga. O twórczości poetyckiej Janusza St. Pasierba, Lublin 2006.
• Wiersze wobec Innego, Sopot 2012.
• Generacja „źle obecna”, Sopot 2014.
• „Próba bólu”. O wierszach Joanny Pollakówny, Warsaw 2016

TRANSLATIONS

English:

• In the anthology City of Memory, edited and translated Michael J. Mikos, Bloomington 2015.

German:

• In „Lichtungen” 2009 nr 30, trans. Renate Schmigdall.

French:

• In the anthology Celui qui fut labeur la lumière, trans. Krzysztof Jeżewski and Claude-Henry du Bord, Paris 2014.

Russian:

• in„Nowaja Polsza” 2016 nr 2, trans. Władimir Okuń.

Slovak:

• In the anthology W liliowej ciszy, trans. Peter Karpinský, Piwniczna 2003.

Turkish:

• In the anthology Uluslararası Eskişehir siir Buluşması, trans. Grażyna Zając, Eskisehir 2016.