The Witkacy by Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz

In the 1960s, the purchase of so many pastel works by Witkiewicz was quite a risky step – the Zakopane eccentric was valued for his achievements in the field of theatre and drama, but his artistic works were not popular.

It was Michal Bialynicki-Birula, son of Teodor, who was a doctor in Zakopane and friend of Witkacy. It was then that the Pomorskie Central Museum in Slupsk bought 109 portraits and one composition from one of Lebork citizen.

The history of the artist’s collection in Pomorskie dates back to 1965. With probability bordering on certainty, Witkacy was never in Slupsk. How come Witkacy’s works ended up in Slupsk? For years he had prophesied the invasion of the Asian civilisation on Europe, so when he heard that the Soviet army had enteredPoland in September 1939, he committed suicide. He also witnessed the outbreak of the Russian revolution and the beginning of World War II. He took part in World War I as a soldier and officer, although he never related his wartime adventures. Sailing the vast seas of pure form did not shelter Witkacy from the winds of history. Although he did not set much store by this field of his work, it is the portraits of famous and unknown people, sometimes realistic, but just with a hint of metaphysics, and sometimes utterly fantastic, that brought him the most fame and recognition. The pursuit of pure form, although interesting, did not yield profit, which led him to paint commissioned portraits within the framework of the “S. His extremely colourful personality and eccentric behaviour and views, as well as a certain “vogue for Witkacy”, made him one of the most important personages of pre-war Poland’s artistic and social life. He was an esteemed painter and a frequently-staged playwright. He sought it with equal enthusiasm in painting and in literature. He spent all his life looking for the artistic absolute, which he called “pure form”. Even when he was a child he met the luminaries of Polish culture and art – no wonder then that he chose an interesting yet difficult way to pursue in his own art. Witkacy grew up to be an incredibly colourful yet controversial figure. His godparents were Helena Modrzejewska – the icon of Polish theatre, and Sabała, a Podhale highlander and story-teller. He was born in Warsaw, the son of two artists – a painter (father) and a musician (mother). Pomorskie Travel Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz (Witkacy)

The Witkacy by Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz