Heksa

Nikiszowiec in Janów, Silesia, South-Western Poland, 1920s. A colonial goods store managed by a young clerk Alojz is visited by an enticing Pelagia. Residents, including miners and their wives, immediately fall under her spell: some admire her, while others whisper about her possibly practicing witchcraft…

The presence of Heksa (in Silesian – „a witch”) influences not only the life of the young Alojz, but also the entire local community, including a brewing new artistic movement.

The latest comic by Katarzyna Witerscheim („Helena Wiktoria”, „Slavonica”) is yet another venture into her homeland of Silesia. Nikiszowiec, today a historic district of Katowice, becomes the stage for a love entanglement between the main heroes, but also for important changes in the societal norms of women. It depicts a world of Silesian folklore: rituals, local customs, specific Silesian Catholicism flavoured by the region’s beliefs, including a particular fascination with the occult. The story combines fictional events with historical ones, including the humble beginnings of one of the most peculiar artistic movements of 20th century Poland – the amateur painters from Janowska group.

Heksa serves as Witerscheim’s greatest artistic achievement: her characteristic style, soft and detailed at once, is masterfully paired by warm rose colours painted by XULM, who also designed the cover art. The author combines Polish language with Silesian in a manner that is both easy to understand and respectful to the source. The comic book includes a foreword by the author, as well as a dictionary of Silesian words and phrases used in the dialogues.