Sunset

Jan Stanisławski (1860-1907) was an artist considered to be one of the foremost Polish landscapists. Many artists of the Young Poland period were fascinated by nature, but it was Stanisławski who made this the core of his artistic work. He sought inspiration while on walks around Kraków and in the open in villages and meadows in the vicinity of the city, as well as during longer journeys, Spain or Switzerland. As a professor at what was then called the Krakow School of Fine Arts, he completely changed the way students were taught, taking them out of the studio and organising plein air sessions. He conducted lessons in the Botanical Garden and at Jordan Park in Kraków. His students immortalised on canvas views of Tyniec and Dębniki, and also set out further afield, to Zakopane, among other places.

Stanisławski’s rather small canvases draw attention through their sensitivity to the ephemerality of the moment and the changeability of nature. They perfectly convey sparkling light effects and contrasts between shaded areas and those in full sun. Stanisławski’s landscapes seem to be constantly in motion; the shadow of clouds and trees crawl along the ground, the air hums from the summer heat or an autumn wind. The artist carefully and naturally captures the essence of the changing seasons and weather conditions. He presents them in a very sensuous way. Looking at these spring landscapes, we can almost smell the scent of cherry blossoms and the soil damp from the thawing snow, while standing before the paintings which portray summer scenes, we can almost hear the buzzing of insects floating through the air. Stanisławski painted larger scale landscapes, meadows, and river bends as well as individual hollyhock or mullein flowers with equal care.