PIE # 107 - Co wiemy i czego nie wiemy o Matejce?”

(19.03.2016) Danuta Batorska

Co wiemy i czego nie wiemy o Matejce?

Jan Matejko’s (1838-1893) paintings are known by nearly everyone who claims Polish heritage, as well as his intention to sustain with them the independent Polish spirit during the darkest moments when Poland was partitioned by Austria, Prussia and Russia. Some of his works were subject to censorship, and this aspect of his activity has been studied by me, "The Political Censorship of Jan Matejko,” Art Journal, 1992, Vol 51, no. 1, pp. 57-63, a publication of College Art Association of America. Another painting, Jan Sobieski at Vienna at the Vatican Museums, although known to Polish art historians has not been studied in Poland. My study, “Jan Matejko’s Sobieski at Vienna,” Bollettino Vaticano, 1995, Vol. XV, pp. 285-316, is the only essay on this painting. The talk will focus on only five of his works and perhaps will add to the understanding of Jan Matejko.