8. Edward Dwurnik (1943–2018)

Edward Dwurnik (1943–2018)

Panorama of Jelenia Góra, 1998, no. 3356 b, Hitchhiking cycle IX
oil on canvas, 200 × 220 cm
signature in the lower right corner: JELENIA/ GÓRA 1998/ E. DWURNIK.

He was a painter, draftsman and printmaker. He studied at the Faculty of Painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw from 1963 to 1970 in Krystyna Łada-Studnicka’s studio. He also studied sculpture for three years. In 1992, he was awarded the prestigious Coutts & Co Foundation Prize in Zurich. He received numerous other awards and distinctions, including the „Solidarity” Cultural Award (1983), the Nouvelle Biennale de Paris Award (1985), the Art Olympics Award in Seoul (1988) and the Contemporary Art Foundation Award (1992).

In addition to painting, Dwurnik worked in printmaking and drawing. He designed monumental painted compositions for public spaces. He created drawings and gouaches for the animated films Warzywniak (2007) and Oasis (2009), both of which were directed by Andrzej Barański. Several documentaries have been made about his work, including Fruits of the Earth (1977), Portrait from Nature (1984) and Polish Nike (1987), all directed by Andrzej Szczygieł, as well as Edward Dwurnik’s Journeys (1995) by Grażyna Banaszkiewicz.

Works in collections:

Albertina, Vienna; S.M.A.K. (Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst), Ghent, Belgium; Alvar Aalto Museum, Jyväskylä, Finland; Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, the Netherlands; Gemäldegalerie Neue Meister Albertinum, Dresden; Museum Junge Kunst, Frankfurt (Oder); Kunsthalle zu Kiel der Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel; Museum Ludwig, Cologne; Württembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart; Museum Villa Haiss, Zell am Harmersbach, Germany; Slovak National Gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia; Schaulager, Basel, Switzerland; Cleveland County Museum; Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C., USA.

Description:
This large painting presents a bird’s-eye view of the centre of Jelenia Góra in Dwurnik’s characteristic, fairy-tale style. The composition is filled with densely arranged, colourful townhouses, with the Church of Saints Erasmus and Pancras and the Town Hall standing out as key landmarks. Stylised deer and numerous human figures animate the streets, creating a lively urban scene. The vibrant palette, dominant orange rooftops and carefully applied thin paint layer are typical of the artist’s work. The painting is signed in the lower right: JELENIA GÓRA/ 1998 E. DWURNIK.