Taken in ca 1930. Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe, public domain (accessed: November 29, 2021).
Artur Oppman
[Or-Ot] , 1867 - 1931
Artur Franciszek Michał Oppman (1867–1931), widely known under his pen-name Or-Ot, was a Polish poet, journalist, entrepreneur and collector, born in Warsaw to a family of mustard producers of German origin. At 16, his first publications appeared in journals and magazines. Shortly after, he became a staff literary reporter for Kurier Poranny. He also wrote for Kurier Warszawski, Kłosy and Tygodnik Ilustrowany. Later he co-edited Wędrowiec and Tygodnik Ilustrowany. He had frequent conflicts with censorship because of his keen interest in historical and patriotic content. Oppman also edited calendars and almanacs. He lived in Warsaw, in the district of Stare Miasto (Old Town), where he often hosted members of Warsaw literary and artistic establishment, including Bolesław Prus, Władysław Reymont, Kazimierz Przerwa-Tetmajer, Bolesław Leśmian, Stefan Żeromski or Wojciech Kossak. In 1920 he joined the Polish Army, where he actively attempted to create the structures of a military press. Having left the army in 1925, he traded antiquities and collected Varsaviana and militaria. In his house at 8 Kanonia street, he intended to open a museum of the history of Warsaw. As he was a passionate author of poems about the Old Town of Warsaw, and collector and publisher of old Warsaw legends, he is always identified with the area of his true interest – the city of Warsaw. He received many awards and decorations in Poland and abroad: the Polonia Restituta Officer’s Cross, the Golden Cross of Merit, the Order of the Star of Romania Officer’s Cross, the National Order of the Legion of Honour (Knight), and Ordre des Palmes académiques.
Sources:
Bartnicka, Józefa, “Oppman Artur” in Literatura polska. Przewodnik encyklopedyczny, PWN, Warszawa 1984–1985, vol. II, 87.
Kapuścik, Janusz and Piotr Stawecki, “Oppman Artur” in Polski słownik biograficzny, vol. 24, Wrocław: Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich – Wydawnictwo Polskiej Akademii Nauk, 1979, 145–147.
Bio prepared by Marta Pszczolińska, University of Warsaw, m.pszczolinska@al.uw.edu.pl
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