Polish parishes and churches in Chicago. St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, interior decoration

The character of the interior of this church is determined primarily by the paintings of Tadeusz Żukotynski, born in Kamieniec Podolski, who was a student of Ksawery Pillati and Jan Matejko, and studied painting at the famous Munich academy of arts. In 1887, a year before moving to Chicago, he executed a cycle of paintings showing scenes from the life of St. Stanislaus Kostka, surrounded with an ornamental frame.
Tadeusz Żukotyński created the most interesting painting in the chancel (1895, completed in 1899). It can be interpreted in the religious and patriotic context. In the lower part he presented the patron saints of Poland: St. Hedwig of Silesia, St. Stanislaus, St. Casimir, St. John Cantius, St. Andrew Bobola, St. Czesław, St. Hyacinth and St. Bronisława, and above he depicted the epic glory of the resurrected Jesus Christ. The Savior’s triumph is witnessed by hosts of angels, patrons of humanity, saints of the Old and New Testaments, and saints from Slavic countries, including again the patron saints of Poland. Martyrs also pay homage to Christ, including the
defenders of the Benedictine convent in Kroże, abolished by the Tsar, who gave their lives to God and their Homeland on November 22, 1893.