Portrait of Jan Lemański

Jan Lemanski (1866-1933), portrayed by Konrad Krzyżanowski, was a fabulist, poet and satirist connected with the literary circles of Young Poland in Warsaw. In 1901-1907, just like the painter, he was a member of the editorial board of a leading magazine ‘Chimera’ devoted to art, where he published. For a short time he was the husband of the poet Maria Komornicka (1876-1949), who, at the age of thirty, declared a change of gender and took the name Piotr Odmieniec Włast. The artist worked as a clerk in the Ministry of the Interior and film censor in the interwar period. Towards the end of his life, he withdrew from literary activity.

The portrait was probably painted during their joint work for ‘Chimera’. Krzyżanowski painted many people from the artistic bohemia, personally choosing his models. In his accounts, Lemanski appears as an original and peculiar character. The literary critic Jan Lorentowicz wrote about him in his memoirs: ‘A great friend of children, a weirdo and a magician, a loner and a taciturn [...] despite his satirical talent, he was a lyricist of exceptional softness and sweetness; his disposition was almost childlike, his kindness extraordinary. Closed in on himself, he concealed from those closest to him the torment he was undergoing'.

It seems that this description was reflected in the image by the unrivalled portraitist of Young Poland, known as the painter of souls. The wide-open eyes of the tired man, set in a beaten, sunken, sad face, emanate suffering and anxiety. The fixed gaze is directed into the distance. However, the portrayed man does not see the outside world. Instead, he is looking into himself with tension. Expression and emotional expression have been accumulated in the face, namely in the eyes. Thanks to this almost sketch-like image, the artist was able to show personality and capture clearly and decisively the person's individuality. Krzyżanowski consciously omitted unimportant details; with a decisive stroke of the brush, he marked only some aspects of the figure and background elements. The space is unreal; the figure, defined by strong streaks of brown and black, seems to be suspended in the void. Together with the gloomy colours, it gives the portrait an uneasy and mysterious quality. The only soothing colour accents are patches of light ochre and white, which reflect the harsh light coming from the left, bringing the figure out of the darkness.

Bożena Kasperowicz