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Did you know that Wyspiański in Biecz We were very close to having the opportunity to see polychromes and stained-glass panels made by Stanisław Wyspiański in the parish church in Biecz. The artist stayed in Biecz in 1889 during a scientific trip around the regions of Biecz and Sącz organized by the professor of the Kraków School of Fine Arts (today’s Academy of Fine Arts) Władysław Łuszczkiewicz... |
Did you know that Photography of Wyspiański and Mehoffer In the collection of the Museum of Ziemia Biecka in Biecz, there is a unique photo from 1889, depicting the students of the second year of thethen School of Fine Arts (today’s Academy of Fine Arts) in Kraków, during an educational trip around the regions of Sądecczyzna and Biecz under the supervision of Prof. Władysław Łuszkiewicz. |
A plaque commemorating Stanisław Wyspiański by Konstanty Laszczka The reliefs commemorating Stanisław Wyspiański (1869–1907) and Jan Stanisławski (1860–1907) are set at eye level in the wall by the landing of a staircase between the first and second floors of the main building of the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. |
Did you know that The costume of the “Lajkonik” The costume designed by Stanisław Wyspiański, which the Lajkonik (a bearded man with a hobby horse, dressed like a Tartar warrior – one of the symbols of the city’s folklore and tradition) of Kraków dons every year weighs as much as 40 kg. Despite the hot June weather, he must perform three ritual dances holding a six-meter banner... |
Did you know that The girl from the cover A prototype of the woman behind the window in the performance The class has died was probably a drawing by Stanisław Wyspiański, published on the cover of Interiors by Maurice Maeterlinck (1901). The sketch was created as a playbill of the poster announcing a lecture by Stanisław Przybyszewski, connected with the stage... |
Did you know that Lounge chairs from the user’s perspective Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński had a unique opportunity not only to get to know Wyspiański, but also to sit on the furniture designed by this Kraków artist on a daily basis. How did he assess the suite designed for the lounge? Years later, he recalled: “Only once did we dare protest and only after a lengthy argument about who would... |
Did you know that The Lajkonik Parade The Lajkonik (a person dressed as a Tatar riding a hobbyhorse), formerly known as the Zwierzyniec Horse, appears on one day of the year on the streets of Kraków together with its whole entourage and the Mlaskot band (which owes its name to the shrill sound of the music it plays), on the octave of the Feast of Corpus Christi. |
Did you know that Boy about Wyspiański’s furniture Recognising Wyspiański’s genius, Boy-Żeleński joked that if he were asked to design a locomotive, as a complete artist, he would have scrupulously brought the completed design on the next day. It is no wonder then that furniture became one of the fields of his activity. |
Mock-up of decorations of act I of “Legenda II” (“Legend II”) by Stanisław Wyspiański This mock-up is one of the most valuable objects in the collections of HMK, related to the scenographic activity of Stanisław Wyspiański. As an experienced theatre practitioner and stage director of his dramas, Wyspiański made scenography sketches, decorations, and costume designs, as well as mock-ups. |
Andrzej Wajda's journal of the performance of “The Wedding” (Stary Theatre, 1991) Directors’ journals usually include unique notes concerning the production of a film or performance. They are notebooks in which all essential information is recorded – from their thoughts about the interpretation, suggestions for the arrangement of stage movements to the list of actors together with their telephone numbers. For the reader, it can be a treasury of knowledge on a stage or film adaptation of a work and offer an insight on the director's method of working. The presented journal of Andrzej Wajda is a record of his work on The Wedding by Stanisław Wyspański, which was staged in the Stary Theatre in Kraków in 1991. |
Bas relief “Fallen Angels” by Stanisław Wyspiański In 1895, Stanisław Wyspiański made a polychrome project for the presbytery of a Franciscan church. The composition consists of three elements: the titular fallen angels, at which the group of archers aims, and the figure of Archangel Michael, who guards the gates of paradise. A perfect accompaniment to this work is the polychrome located on the opposite side of the presbytery: Madonna and the Child and Caritas. The artist, in a visible way, juxtaposed two attitudes to life and showed their possible consequences. |
Living room furniture set designed by Stanisław Wyspiański At the turn of 1905, Stanisław Wyspiańki designed the interior of the flat of Zofia née Pareńska and Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński. The history of furniture creation was described by the owner in his Historia pewnych mebli [History of certain furniture] essay published in 1927 by Kurier Poranny [Morning Courier]. Apart from the furniture, other decorative elements were designed, such as the colours of the walls in the individual rooms and the matching curtains. |
Painting “Self-portrait with wife” by Stanisław Wyspiański Wyspiański left twelve self-portraits. Every one of them is a fascinating record of the physical change and current emotional state of the artist according to his often-repeated belief stating that “man (...) changes irretrievably; they are changed by their experiences and thoughts. A portrait is a reflection of a moment, an artistic reflection seizing things in their very essence.” |
“A Comic Book. Manggha and Wyspiański” – digital graphic artwork by Jakub Woynarowski The idea of a comic strip about Feliks Jasieński, the Centre's patron, was the brainchild of Andrzej Wajda. The artwork was produced by Jakub Woynarowski in 2010, and it tells the story of a superhero – a Polish collector of Japanese art entangled in affairs of a social and health nature. Jakub Woynarowski keeps the story in perspective by using quite sophisticated, although simple looking means of expression – foreshortening, synthesis, as well as undertones. |
Painting “Helenka with a Vase” by Stanisław Wyspiański Portraits of children occupy a special place in Wyspiański’s artistic oeuvre. Without the unnecessary sentimentalism, treated in a natural, affectionate manner with a great dose of sensitivity and realism, and captured in new and unexpected depictions, they refreshed the usual connotations related to this genre. |
Kraków Bronowice cottage The model was made in 1901 by Bronowice carpenters under the supervision of Włodzimierz Tetmajer and with the participation of a painter, Antoni Procajłowicz. The piece was commissioned by Jerzy Warchałowski on the occasion of the First Exhibition of the Polish Applied Arts Society in Kraków. |
Lajkonik’s costume designed by Stanisław Wyspiański The costume of Lajkonik, also called the Zwierzyniec Horse, designed by Stanisław Wyspiański in 1904, could be seen in the streets of Kraków until 1963. The costume used today during the annual frolics of Lajkonik is a faithful copy of the displayed exhibit. Although legend associates the origins of Lajkonik celebrations with the Tatar invasions of Kraków in the 13th century, the first ever source reference to it dates back to 1738. |
Did you know that Michalik’s Cave with Wyspiański’s drawings? Located close to the municipal theatre (today the Słowacki Theater) and the School (later Academy) of Fine Arts, this confectionery quickly became the favourite meeting spot for the circles of young Cracovian painters. Today, there are legends about how meticulously the owner – Jan Michalik – kept his accounts... |
Toy “Lajkonik’s march” by Jan Oprocha (father) A toy cart, or actually a platform on wheels with holes to thread a pulling cord through and 31 figurines arranged on it, rocking while the toy is pulled. The whole toy, including the platform and the figurines, is made of polychrome wood. The rectangular platform with its bevelled corners and wheels are painted green. The edges are coated with white, yellow and pink paint, and the spokes are marked with yellow, blue and red. |