The paintings come from the collection of Andrzej Starmach - the artist's friend and mentor and president of the Nowosielski Foundation - who also made their own selection. They are oil works that are, in a way, a 'journey in time' through the artist's oeuvre - the earliest dating from the late 1940s, the latest from 1992. Interestingly, these works do not exist in the collective imagination as 'typical' Nowosielski paintings. "The paintings we are presenting do not relate directly to Orthodox spirituality," says the head of the Museum of the Academy of Fine Arts, Janusz Kozioł, "but they are a kind of cross-section of the artist's painting fascinations. Alongside geometric abstractions, we will see nudes, as well as still lifes". We should add that as far as technique is concerned, they are all inspired by the art of 'icon writing', so close to Nowosielski, which the artist creatively developed in his own characteristic way.

Jerzy Nowosielski (1923 - 2011) - Polish painter, illustrator, stage designer, philosopher and Orthodox theologian, one of the most eminent contemporary icon writers, author of valuable theoretical works on icons and painting. Winner of numerous state awards and the 'Totus Tuus' award, known as the 'Catholic Nobel'. From an early age, the artist himself was fascinated by the Eastern liturgy, in which he was brought up (first as a Greek Catholic and later as an Orthodox). Nowosielski initially attended the Staatliche Kunstgewerbeschule Krakau. From 1942 to 1943, while serving his novitiate, he studied iconography at the Uniate Lavra of St John the Baptist in Uniovo near Lviv. Upon his return to Krakow, he joined the circle of the Second Krakow Group, which was formed after the war. Between 1945 and 1947, he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts under Professor Eugeniusz Eibisch. In October 1947, he became Tadeusz Kantor's assistant at the State Higher School of Visual Arts. At the time, he remained under the strong influence of Tadeusz Brzozowski. He obtained his diploma from the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow in 1961 as an extern. Between 1950 and 1962, he lived in Łódź, where he worked as a lecturer at the State Higher School of Visual Arts there. During this time, he represented Poland at the Venice Biennale (1956) and in São Paulo (1959). He returned to Krakow in 1962 and took up a painting studio at the Academy of Fine Arts. In 1976, he became a professor at the Academy of Fine Arts and a member of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences. He received the title of full professor in 1985. He retired in 1993. On 12 May 2000, he received an honoris causa degree from the Jagiellonian University as the only painter after Jan Matejko.

Artist: Jerzy Nowosielski

Curated by: Andrzej Starmach

Academy of Fine Arts Museum | Jana Matejki Square 13