|
Did you know that Touching There is a plant called the “touch-me-not balsam”, in English. Its Latin name, which is impatiens noli-tangere, seems to be much more interesting. This plant turns out to be not only impatient (impatiens), but also unwilling to be touched (noli-tangere). This Latin name refers to the words that the resurrected Jesus directed to Mary Magdalene: noli me tangere, meaning “do not touch” or “do not stop me”. |
 Wooden snuffbox A container in the shape of a human hand clenched into a fist, intended for storing snuff. It is made of oak, with a rectangular hollowed-out interior, covered with a thin lid. The plate of the lid is mounted on the wrist part with a leather hinge. It is finished with a ledge, which was used to raise the lid with a fingernail. The snuffbox is finished with dark brown French polish. |
 Krištof Kintera, “All My Bad Thoughts” Visualization of the Spiritual State. It is difficult to convey depression because of the lack of words, and the available expressions are banal to the point of ennui. A painting turns out to be a more capacious and sensitive medium than words or poetry. The “black secretion of the soul” is poured over a reclining figure. |
 “Study of a male figure” by Stanisław Bieńkiewicz Stanisław Bieńkiewicz (1855–after 1930) in 1871–1880 studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków under the direction of Jan Matejko. During the period 1889–1890, together with Józef Mehoffer and Stanisław Wyspiański, he worked on a polychrome of Mariacki Church in Kraków. Bieńkiewicz painted portraits, landscapes, historical, genre and religious scenes. |
Did you know that Maria Jarema. O potędze wolności myślenia Pięćdziesiąt lat życia Marii Jaremy obejmowało mniej więcej pierwszą połowę dwudziestego stulecia. Pół wieku to niewiele. Jednak przez większość tego czasu artystka przyglądała się krytycznie kalejdoskopowi „-izmów” i włączała się aktywnie w najbardziej postępowe nurty sztuki. „Zawsze w awangardzie” – stwierdził po jej śmierci Henryk Stażewski.
Krótkie życie Jaremianki rekompensuje intensywność wyrazu jej prac.
Maria Jarema była rzeźbiarką i malarką, projektowała kostiumy i scenografię do spektakli teatralnych, występowała też na scenie. Sprawy artystyczne łączyła z zaangażowaniem społecznym. Jej magnetyczna osobowość, w połączeniu z odwagą poglądów i konsekwencją w podążaniu raz obraną drogą, przeszły do legendy. |
 Group AES+F, “Défilé #1” The AES+F group shows dead bodies dressed in ballroom finery. The dramatic content is emphasised by using f life-size photographs, made all the more realistic by being displayed in lightboxes. The human fear of passing away is hidden behind obsessive adornment of the body. Death is presented in its “luxury” version which, despite all efforts, only serves to emphasize the deadness of the corpse. The series Défilé consists of 7 photographs in lightboxes. Film with the photographic prints has been glued to Plexi and placed in aluminium boxes, lit from behind. |
 Group AES+F, “Défilé #4” The AES+F group shows dead bodies dressed in ballroom finery. The dramatic content is emphasised by using life-size photographs, made all the more realistic by being displayed in lightboxes. The human fear of passing away is hidden behind obsessive adornment of the body. Death is presented in its “luxury” version which, despite all efforts, only serves to emphasize the deadness of the corpse. The series Défilé consists of 7 photographs in lightboxes. Film with the photographic prints has been glued to Plexi and placed in aluminium boxes, lit from behind. |
 Group AES+F, “Défilé #6” The AES+F group shows dead bodies dressed in ballroom finery. The dramatic content is emphasised by using f life-size photographs, made all the more realistic by being displayed in lightboxes. The human fear of passing away is hidden behind obsessive adornment of the body. Death is presented in its “luxury” version which, despite all efforts, only serves to emphasize the deadness of the corpse. The series Défilé consists of 7 photographs in lightboxes. Film with the photographic prints has been glued to Plexi and placed in aluminium boxes, lit from behind. |
 Group AES+F, “Défilé #5” The AES+F group shows dead bodies dressed in ballroom finery. The dramatic content is emphasised by using f life-size photographs, made all the more realistic by being displayed in lightboxes. The human fear of passing away is hidden behind obsessive adornment of the body. Death is presented in its “luxury” version which, despite all efforts, only serves to emphasize the deadness of the corpse. The series Défilé consists of 7 photographs in lightboxes. Film with the photographic prints has been glued to Plexi and placed in aluminium boxes, lit from behind. |
 “Anatomical study of muscles” by Ferdynand Olesiński Ferdynand Olesiński, from a family of Wieliczka [the centre of salt mining] miners, was educated during the period 1871–1883 at the Kraków School of Fine Arts under the direction of Florian Cynk, Leopold Loeffler, Feliks Szynalewski, Henryk Grabowski, Izydor Jabłoński, and above all Jan Matejko and Władysław Łuszczkiewicz. He was a distinguished student who won praise and rewards. |
 “Male nude figure” by Adam Ciopcio-Siemianowicz Adam Siemianowicz (family name: Ciopcio) was born in 1902 in Orenburg on the Ural River in the Russian Empire. The future painter was the son of Szymon Ciopcio and Julia née Abramik, peasants from Podlasie exiled to the Urals in 1888. The boy began to paint while still in Orenburg. At that time, he usually painted postimpressionism-styled landscapes. |
Did you know that The practice of casting death masks The custom of creating death masks of important figures became especially popular in the 19th century, although the very tradition of creating such likenesses can be traced back to ancient Rome, where wax casts of the emperor’s face (effigies) were presented for public viewing. According to common practice... |
Did you know that From the diary of a body Is it possible to dry a body in a herbarium? I will ask more expressively: Is it possible to dry a living body in a herbarium? Or even more clearly: Is it possible to dry the body of your own adolescent son in a herbarium? |
 “Study of the nude figure of a standing woman” by Stanisław Zygmunt Malcher The present Study of the nude figure of a standing woman was created during Malcher’s studies at the academy in Kraków. The post-impressionist style and vivid colouration of the image testify to the impact that the works of both his university masters exerted on the artist. |
 El-Kantara male torso The alabaster sculpture, 15 cm high, was purchased by soldiers of the Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade during WW II. The statue represents a young naked man with a sealed head, legs and arms. At the back there is a flat column, which is triangularly finished at the top. |
 Bartek Materka, untitled [“Skeletons”] Reconstruction of an open grave. By the manner of painting, the artist has emphasised the emotive quality of the represention of a post mortem. |
 Muntean/Rosenblum, untitled [“They realized that their capacity…”] [They realized that their capacity for not feeling lonely carried very real price, which was the threat of feeling nothing at all.]
Four young people appear to be taking drugs in a forest. This suspicion is at odds with the ambiance of the attractive forest and sunlight filtered through the trees. An integral part of the painting is a poetic declaration which implies a risky experiment. It entails a statement of the absence of loneliness. However, the painted protagonists appear to be entirely lonely; they do not even notice their own presence. If so, they only have themselves to thank for their lack of loneliness. |
 “Naked young man” by Stanisław Radziejowski Stanisław Józef Rafał Dominik Radziejowski was born to a landowning family in Zegartowice near Wieliczka. He probably started studying at the School of Fine Arts in Kraków in the academic year 1874/1875 and he is thought to have only studied for one year. However, this information has not been confirmed. Certainly, Radziejowski studied at the School of Fine Arts during the period 1880–1885 and 1888–1891 in the composition department of Jan Matejko. During his studies, he received several awards... |
 “Borghese gladiator” by Antoni Stopa Antoni Stopa, a painter, writer and agrarian activist, was born on 5 August 1849 in a peasant family living in a hamlet on Mount Ostrysz near Maków (now Maków Podhalański). Stopa created under many pseudonyms, many of which related to his ancestry: AS, As, Antoni Sygoń, Antoni Sygoń of Babia Góra, Pauper of Maków, Boruta, Peasant from Babia Góra, Peasant from a village, Świtoniec, Jan Kwaśny, Jantek of Ostrysa, Jaźwiec, Kitaj, LM, Leszczak, Walenty Sygoń, Ostrysiak and Racławiak. |
 “Nudo” by Igor Mitoraj The present sculpture was gifted to the Academy of Fine Arts by the artist himself, on the occasion of the university awarding him with an honorary doctorate in 2003. Simultaneously, a large exhibition of the sculptor’s works took place in Kraków. Igor Mitoraj (1944–2014) studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków under tutelage of Tadeusz Kantor. After graduation, he went to Paris, where he made his debut as a painter and graphic designer. Over time, the artist abandoned the arts he was trained in in favour of sculpture. He also gave up on following progressive trends in arts, and, since then, his artistic works represent realism inspired by the antiquity. |
