Michal Stanko, On the Mountaintop

Shepherds in a shepherd's hut on the Polonina, oil, fiberboard, dimensions 27.5 x 39.5 cm, signed p.d. "MStańko", inscription on the back in red crayon: "Stańko 1932 Zakopane" and a printed sticker with the number "113".

Michał Stańko (1901-1969) lived and worked in Sosnowiec. He was a member of the Association of Polish Artists. He participated, among other things, in the exhibition of the Horned Hearts Strain at the Institute of Art Propaganda in Warsaw in 1936 as "Michal from Sosnowiec." He painted primarily landscapes, and his favorite subjects were Tatra motifs; he also painted religious representations. In his early youth he lived in Miechow. During World War I, he fought in the Legions. In 1927-1939 he stayed mainly in Zakopane; he painted numerous Tatra landscapes and collaborated with Janusz Kotarbiński, working on the polychromy of the new parish church (1932-1934).After the war he was associated with the Silesian artistic community, but permanently lived in his favorite Zakopane, where he had a studio.