The Countryside by Feliks Łukowski – 1940s–1950s Photographs
Feliks Łukowski’s photos document the life of his home region and stand as a creative act of growing importance in the history of Polish photography
By The Zamojskie Museum in Zamość
Feliks Łukowski was born on October 28, 1919, in Siemnice, Tomaszów Lubelski County, Lublin Voivodeship
On the way to church (20th Century)The Zamojskie Museum in Zamość
A photographer of people and times
Feliks Łukowski passionately photographed people, easily building rapport. He captured neighbours, German gendarmes, Polish policemen, and resettled Germans — many posed willingly. During WWII, he documented scenes that drew his attention.
Feliks Łukowski’s photography studio
The photograph shows the photography studio – the workplace of Feliks Łukowski.
Ordinary life
What stands out is the remarkable nature of ordinary life, which Feliks Łukowski was able to capture through his lens in a truly unique way.
In his family home, Feliks Łukowski set up his own photography studio. He developed and enlarged his photographs himself, using natural daylight. The lack of electricity in Siemnice required improvisation – instead of a specialist darkroom lamp, Feliks Łukowski used an ordinary oil lamp wrapped in red tissue paper.
Siemierz. Helena Krupa with her daughter Urszula
The photograph shows residents of the village of Siemierz – Helena Krupa holding her daughter Urszula in her arms. A moment of maternal tenderness and a child’s smile captured in frame. A portrait of family warmth and enduring bonds in uncertain times.
Kazimiera Wronka and Jan Stopa – wedding portrait
The young couple poses in a field – the heart of their daily life. She wears a modest dress and wildflowers; he stands in a dark suit, calm and moved. Feliks Łukowski perfectly captured the emotions of the newlyweds.
Swatowski family from Siemnice (20th Century)The Zamojskie Museum in Zamość
The Swatowski family from Siemnice
The portrait of the Swatowski family reflects the strength of family bonds, as well as the modesty and dignity with which the people of the Zamość region endured daily life in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
Rural everyday life
This black-and-white photograph is a poignant record of rural life and labour during a time when agriculture was shifting from manual work to mechanisation. The captured scene shows a traditional harvest, with a traction engine powering a threshing machine at its centre.
Siemnice. Lila Steinmüller – a resettled German
This seemingly peaceful photograph echoes the drama of forced resettlements, broken families, destroyed homes, and efforts to reshape Poland’s cultural landscape. Youthful ease contrasts with historical weight.
Feliks Łukowski’s family photograph
One of the more intriguing aspects of Feliks Łukowski’s work is his approach to photography – immersing himself in the very heart of the scene. He often appears in his own photographs, becoming a natural part of them. Feliks Łukowski stands first from the right.
Forced labor in Siemnice on the river supplying water to the mill (20th Century)The Zamojskie Museum in Zamość
Community labour in Siemnice
Villagers work together to clear snow from the river supplying water to the mill. This type of communal labour, carried out for the benefit of the entire village, was an integral part of rural community life.
Childhood in the frame
Two children with a dog in an idyllic rural landscape. A boy and a girl pose for a photo against a backdrop of farmland. The dog, sitting on its hind legs, draws attention and adds a cheerful, family-like warmth to the scene.
On the other side of the lens
Feliks Łukowski stands on the right, next to a young woman with a guitar. The scene is full of lightness, smiles, and the very life he so often captured through his lens.
“...At the time, I lived in the south-eastern part of the Lublin region, in the former Tomaszów County. My friend Feliks, who was older than me, was often held up by my mother as a model of a well-mannered and hardworking young man—someone I was absolutely expected to emulate, especially when my own behaviour was being reprimanded!...”
— Jerzy Lewczyński, friend of Feliks Łukowski
Playing soldiers
Boys with sticks pretending they’re weapons – playing soldiers during the German occupation. Despite harsh realities, children tried to imitate the adult world, learning courage and a sense of togetherness through play.
On the way to the wedding
A procession of horse-drawn carts with the bride, groom, and guests moves through rural fields. This was the traditional countryside wedding journey – horses, wagons, and joy shared with the whole community.
On a dirt road (20th Century)The Zamojskie Museum in Zamość
A witness to history
The photographs by Feliks Łukowski are among the most important visual records of 20th-century history in the Zamość region. The collection of preserved negatives and prints was donated to The Zamojskie Museum in Zamość by Jerzy Lewczyński and the family of Feliks Łukowski.
Maciej Zwolan
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