Foehn Wind (Halny Wind)

Stanisław Witkiewicz (1851-1915) first visited Zakopane in 1886. His fascination with the Tatra Mountains and their inhabitants was reflected in his writing and artistic work. The majority of Witkiewicz’s mature stage Tatra landscapes are characterised by a unity of styles and motifs. They display exclusively the beauty and richness of form of mountain nature. The composition of this stark winter nocturne is made up of three parallel zones. The first is formed by the snowy mountain meadow, in the middle of which windblown spruce can be seen, while higher up a mountain range rises and the blackish-blue sky is covered by a layer of clouds. The pale moonlight creates dramatic contrasts, intensifying the impression of movement, of the gusts of the “Halny” foehn wind. The work, painted in a narrow and cool range of colours, is an example of the chromatic imitation of photography. The realistic portrayal combined with the symbolisation of mountain scenery make Foehn Wind one of the most interesting and original landscapes in Polish painting.