Portrait of Mr Brześciański

An animalist, portraitist, author of battle scenes - with these words Piotr Michałowski, a Polish painter and social activist, can be described. Discovered at the end of the 19th century by an art historian Jan Bołoz-Antoniewicz, he is now considered one of the most outstanding Polish representatives of Romanticism. Painting was not his main and only occupation. However, it is not true that during his lifetime his work was underestimated. It played an important role in his social life and provided an opportunity to earn a living, which is proved by the recognition he enjoyed in France and by comparing him with the master Géricault.

Michałowski himself indicated the role of art in his life as follows: "I had already been in Eilsen for a few days, not knowing anyone, when by chance I came upon an old castle a quarter of a mile away. I found quite a number of company there, unknown to me, but I kept to myself and amused myself by sketching a horse on a board, when some of the company grouped behind me and began to praise the speed of my hand, the characteristic nature of the rider. The feeling, dormant since my stay in Göttingen, of artistic pride, so pleasantly flattered by the impression which our works make on others, awoke in me anew - and my talent was to my advantage, for it brought me out of solitude and from that time on I knew everyone'.

At the age of thirteen Piotr Michałowski started to learn drawing under Michał Stachowicz, then he took lessons under Józef Brodowski and Franciszek Lampi. As an adult he studied mathematics, natural sciences, economics and humanities. He gained knowledge about painting from visits to museums. During his stay in Paris, he studied with Nicolas-Toussaint Charlet. He admired the works of the Spanish master painter Diego Velázquez. He was fascinated by Napoleon I, which is also reflected in his works.

His favourite motif was horses; as an amateur, he practised his skills by drawing them. He became famous in Polish painting as a portraitist of not so much outstanding individuals, but of people from his closest environment. In Portret konny pana Brześciańskiego [Portrait of Mr Brześciański on Horseback], attention is drawn to the individuality of the figure depicted. The man is wearing an outfit inspired by French fashion.

Under the composition is the signature of Maria Orthwein, a Polish art restorer from the National Museum in Warsaw.

Klara Sadkowska