This article focuses on management in the culture of a unique community, that is, the indigenous people of Australia. On the example of the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park some problems of maintaining the unique cultural heritage of Australian Aborigines were shown. The paper discusses the principles of management of the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park by the representatives of the Aboriginal community and by the federal government. The aim of the analysis is also to draw attention to the threat to the indigenous culture coming from the mass tourism impact and shows ways to reduce mass tourism.

The image of Christ in Distress belongs to the group of Andachtsbilder (German for devotional images) which took shape in the Late Middle Ages (i.e. the 14th–15th c.) and depicted the sufferings of Christ. The purpose of this type of image is to encourage meditative prayer and meditative conversation with the Saviour, as well as emotional empathy for suffering. As a result, the image of Christ in Distress was usually displayed in such a place in a church where people could observe it at a close range, for example, in side chapels, next to isolated columns, or in the gallery or porch. In some churches, the function of the Crucifi x was attributed to the image of Christ in Distress, placed in the porch. Sometimes, the sculpture of Christ in Distress was placed next to a holy water container near the entrance to the church. Also, on some occasions, the image was painted on the façade of a church or chapel. In some cases, a carved statue of Christ in Distress was put at the front of a church or chapel. Sculptures on this theme were also kept in cemetery chapels where the bodies of the dead were laid out. Just like in other countries, the image (i.e. a sculpture or painting) of Christ in Distress in Lithuania was mostly dissociated from the main ecclesiastical interior equipment, i.e. the altar. The statues of Christ in Distress (Lith. Rūpintojėlis, Susimąstęs Kristus) were often put in specially constructed brick niches suggesting the prison of Christ.

The article looks at Count Wojciech Dzieduszycki’s (1848–1909) ideas on church art. His approach to sacred art and individual pieces of art is presented through the analysis of his attitude to 15-17thcentury paintings in Halychyna. The count paid special attention to the iconstasis from the village of Bohorodchany (Ukraine), whose artistic value he appreciated highly, and which he considered equal to works of art by early Renaissance painters. Dzieduszycki claimed that the local church art, having preserved the basic Greek elements and giving new life to the Byzantine canon, by no means rejected the Christian mysticism distinctive of the Western art, but rather, on the contrary, added a unique artistic fl air to it. He acknowledged the aesthetic value of the works of Rus’ art, as well as their high professional level.

The article presents the history of an estimable organization of writers and artists from Cracow. The Society of Art and Literature was brought into existence through the initiative of Juliusz Kossak, an outstanding painter, who in 1869 came to Cracow with his family. Here, among the Cracovian writers, he found a reliable collaborator, Michał Bałucki. The two of them directed the Society since its beginnings in 1881 (Kossak as President and Bałucki as Vice-President). Kossak directed the Society until his death in 1897; after that, Bałucki took over and remained President until his death in 1901. He was succeeded by Julian Fałat, followed by Marian Zdziechowski, August Sokołowski and Kazimierz Morawski.
The Society had its premises in the Main Market Square, where most of its events, like readings and presentations, anniversary celebrations and social receptions, took place. Members of the Society received there eminent guests from both Poland (e.g. Helena Modrzejewska, Henryk Siemiradzki) and abroad (e.g. Marie Pospíšilová, an excellent actress from Prague). In 1883 the Society of Art and Literature organized the First Convention of Polish Artists and Writers. In 1891, together with numerous other Polish artists, writers and intellectuals, members of the Society went to Prague for the National Exhibition. The group played an important role in Cracow and Galicia, although it did not mark out new trends in art or literature; this was done by other Cracovian societies functioning at the turn of the 20th century.

The article describes possible uses of the term “culture” as implemented to the Internet and proposes four levels of its interpretation. The fi rst level is proposed for the Web construed as a way of gathering information about cultural events, so functioning mostly as a channel of information. The second level perceives the Internet as an environment for any organization which could be recognized as “cultural” in any way, including public institutions of culture. The third meaning of culture in the context of the Internet gathers all artistic activities usually connected with social actions. These activities could evolve into particular social events, which usually would cover existing social needs or cultural insuffi ciencies. The fourth meaning sees culture as a tool to perform an abstract and general theory of the Internet seen as a broad environment which includes social matters, technology, history, economy and so on. Each level of interpretation is widely described and supplemented by mostly Polish examples and literature.

As a former communist state, Hungary encounters similar problems with culture management as the other countries of Central Europe, since they have become democratic countries at the same time. The issues of the state’s role in shaping cultural life and of culture funding especially in the time of crisis are disputed, and the discussions do not lead to any consensus. The specifi city of cultural management in Hungary, in addition to a number of typical problems of democracy, is closely linked to the history of the 20th century and the events which permanently affected the national identity and culture of the country. Since the end of World War I the matter of a cultural nation has caused Hungary many problems, but also created many possibilities by the Hungarian national minority living in the neighboring countries and the offi cially recognized nationalities living in Hungary. The current government led by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, being aware of these extra human and cultural resources, has been integrating them tightly with the Hungarian cultural system. However, culture seems to have a secondary position in the state structure, being represented only by a state secretariat within the enormous Ministry of Human Resources. For the purpose of giving some examples of the cultural institutions’ operation, I describe the legal background of museum institutions, public libraries and general cultural education facilities, basically represented by culture houses and cultural centers.