Sale of horse

Józef Chełmoński is one of the most important representatives of Polish realism, who most readily depicted the everyday life in the countryside. He studied in Munich under Hermann Anschütz and Alexander Strähuber. In the capital of Bavaria, he made friends with representatives of the local environment, above all with Stanisław Witkiewicz, Józef Brandt, Maksymilian Gierymski and Adam Chmielowski. Sprzedaż konia [Sale of a Horse] was painted after his return to Poland from Paris, where the artist had lived since 1875. He created this canvas for the collector, Count Ignacy Milewski. The scene takes place on a market square in a small town. The space in which the multithreaded narrative is conducted has been stretched out in a panoramic manner. The painting shows a running man holding a bay horse. A figure falling on his hands and a man running away from the animal add dynamics. Everything is watched by a group of men. The left side of the canvas is much denser than the right and shows roofs of houses. The painting, which depicts a certain dramatic situation in specific circumstances, shows fascination with the vitality of animals and people connected with them.

Beata Małgorzata Wolska