Portrait of wife

Józef Mehoffer was one of the leading representatives of Young Poland. He studied at the Faculty of Law at the Jagiellonian University and simultaneously (1887-1894) at Kraków's School of Fine Arts under Izydor Jabłoński, Józef Unierzyski, Władysław Łuszczkiewicz and Jan Matejko. He continued his artistic education at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna (1889-1890), then in Paris (1891-1896) at the Académie Julian and École Nationale des Arts Décoratifs, later at the Académie Colarossi under Joseph Blanc and Jacques Courtois, at the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts (from 1892) in Leon Bonnat’s atelier. In Paris, he became friends with another outstanding student of Matejko's, Stanisław Wyspiański. They shared a studio imbued with similar artistic fascinations, and both found great success in creating stained-glass windows. They brought Mehoffer worldwide fame, as he won a competition to create stained-glass windows for the Gothic St. Nicholas Collegiate Church in Fribourg, Switzerland (he created it for over thirty years).In the collection of the National Museum in Szczecin, there is Portret żony [Portrait of Wife] from 1908. In the field of painting, portraits were one of the artist's strongest points. It is confirmed in the Szczecin work. It is one of many images of the artist's wife Jadwiga, née Janakowska. She was a muse for him, whom he often presented in exquisite clothes and lofty posture, emphasising her elegance and pride. The artist presented his wife's image comfortably sitting in an armchair against the background of their home. It shows a warm look, a serene expression with a slight blush. The beloved woman is dressed in an elegant black dress, and her hair is up in a bun. She is sitting against the background of household objects, which are a vital element of the representation for the artist. Here one can find specific furniture, books, candlesticks, vases. They are all meticulously displayed and rendered in a subdued colour scheme limited mainly to browns and blacks. Against the background, the wife's face and hands are contrasted with a book and candlesticks. The composition, despite several plans, feels flat. What draws particular attention is the fact that both the furniture and the walls are covered with patterns - they have been treated in a painterly way, which makes everyday objects take on the character of works of art.

Beata Małgorzata Wolska