Crocuses and Marsh-Marigolds

The artistic output of Stanisław Witkiewicz (1851-1915) is an expression of his fascination with the beauty of the region of the Tatra Mountains. Among the mountain landscape compositions painted by Witkiewicz and held in the collections of the National Museum in Krakow, there is a composition entitled Crocuses and Marsh Marigolds. The date “23 July 1907” placed alongside the artist’s signature indicates that the painting was made as a gift for, Maria Dembowska, a woman whom Witkiewicz had befriended. Despite the July date in summer, the work portrays the period just before spring, a transitional period at the juncture of winter and spring, typical for temperate climates. The close-up and relatively tight frame of the composition shows a mountain meadow overgrown with a thick carpet of the Crocus scepusiensis flower, commonly known as the crocus, and the highland Caltha palustris, commonly known as the marsh-marigold. This irregularly shaped flowery carpet is juxtaposed with the snow-covered mountain slopes overgrown with coniferous trees. The sunlight shining on the landscape makes the dark-green trees cast dark shadows. The newly awakening world of nature is captured by the artist in a matter-of-fact manner, devoid of affectations, concentrating on an attempt to convey the light and colour phenomena observed in nature.