FROM A CITY AS A WORK OF ART TO THE ART OF THE CITY (Od miasta jako dziela sztuki do sztuki miasta)

This article aims at a review of contemporary trends in art and theatre, emphasizing the social engagement of artistic action, the participation of the audience, and the modification of the reality of the city. The main focus is on the assumptions and practices of 'community arts' and 'community theatre' - as intriguing artistic proposals, dealing with the main plagues of the contemporary city: atomization, the breakup of social bonds amongst inhabitants, as well as bonds with their city. Art is meant here as an action for the community, and against the disintegration of the social space - through the constitution of new relations among inhabitants, artists, and the city itself. Artistic practices are supposed to transform the audience into the community, and thus to participate in the construction of the public space.