Written by Krzysztof Krzyżanowski Wednesday, 23 February 2011 21:18

Jerzy Nowosielski  ~ Poland’s Most Famous Painter, Graphic Artist & Set Designer ~ In Collections Worldwide, Dies at 88

Krakow, Poland. - Polish painter, graphic artist, stage set designer and illustrator, Jerzy Nowosielski died in his home town of Krakow on Monday 21^st February 2011, he was 88 and had been ill for some time. Jerzy Nowosielski was born on January 7, 1923 in Krakow. He was raised in a Greek Catholic family, a background that would influence his later artwork. In 1940, Nowosielski began training in the Krakow School of Arts and Crafts. During World War II, he became acquainted with the art of icon painting, and helped to create murals in the church at Bolehove. In addition to Polish museums, his portraits, landscapes, still lifes and abstract works are in many private collections in the United States, Canada and many European countries. In memorium Polish artist Jerzy Nowosielski, 1922 -2011.

In 1945 he began studying painting at the Krakow Academy of Fine Arts and he completed his education in 1961. During this period, Nowosielski started painting secular subjects: female characters, gymnasts, swimmers, as well as still lifes. The influence of icon painting was evident in his artwork with the absence of perspective and outlined objects. His first exhibition took place in 1948 in the Krakow Palace of Arts.

Nowosielski gained particular renown for his religious works including wall paintings, iconostases and polychromes in the Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches in many Polish towns, as well as the Greco-Catholic Church in Lourdes, France.

Nowosielski represented Poland at the prestigious art biennales in Venice in 1956 and Sao Paulo in 1959, as well as having around one hundred solo shows around the world.

The artist held an honorary doctor’s degree from the Jagiellonian University in Krakow and several other distinctions, including the Grand Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta one of Poland's highest Orders (conferred for outstanding achievements in public service, science, sport or the arts). As well as being the subject of numerous books, he also authored his autobiography and theoretical works about the art of the icon.

Art critic Agnieszka Morawinska, the director of the National Museum in Warsaw, has described Nowosielski as the classic of modern art. “He has forged his absolutely unique, individual style, winning great acclaim among both the public and art collectors,” she commented following his death.

Andrzej Starmach, one of Poland’s most prolific art collectors and art historians, told the PAP news agency that “he was a great person,” adding that “if anyone needed help, ‘Nowosiel’ would always give them a painting and said ‘try and sell it for yourself’.”

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