The exhibition presents 45 works from the collection of the artist’s daughter, Agata Duda-Gracz. The exhibition offers a unique overview of Jerzy Duda-Gracz’s work, presenting the various stages of his artistic career and showcasing the distinctive style he developed over the years. Visitors can see both very well-known paintings, such as “Field Hamlet” and “Horsemen of the Apocalypse, or a Fudge”, and less iconic but equally interesting works.
A significant group consists of paintings from the early period of Jerzy Duda-Gracz’s career, in which he used clear symbols to expose the flaws of the political and economic system of the Polish People’s Republic and of the society of that time, such as laziness, stupidity and blind fascination with American culture.
Another important group of works is the “Jurassic Paintings” series, which heralds a distinctly different direction: nostalgic landscape painting expressing the artist’s longing for the land of his childhood, which for Jerzy Duda-Gracz was the Kraków-Częstochowa Jura region. The artist was born in Częstochowa, where he spent his childhood. His traditional upbringing at the foot of Jasna Góra, a place held in special religious veneration by Poles, left a lasting mark on his work.
Jerzy Duda-Gracz’s distinctive approach to faith is revealed in a series of sacred works depicting the Crucified Christ against authentic rural landscapes. These paintings demonstrate the artist’s particular sensitivity and his highly individual approach to human spirituality.
A considerable group of the works presented at the Museum also consists of genre scenes depicting events the artist actually observed, set in rural surroundings. Local folklore is shown in a manner characteristic of the artist, using devices such as hyperbole and deformation, particularly in relation to the human body, which is treated here in a distinctive way. The artist depicts stout women with stocky figures who nevertheless possess a certain eroticism, as well as children with distorted heads, for whom he nonetheless feels great sympathy. These scenes demonstrate the artist’s considerable sense of humour and his distance from both the world and himself.
The nocturnes “Nadrzecze – Romeo and Juliet” and “Łagów – Sabat Mater” are particularly striking. Here, human figures have been reduced almost to the role of staffage within the composition. Yet it is in these micro-worlds shown in nocturnal settings that most of the action takes place. The artist depicts there almost a storm of experiences and emotions.
The final group of Jerzy Duda-Gracz’s works consists of small-format standalone landscapes, executed with genuine meticulousness. They delight even those who are critical of the distinctive language of expression used by the artist.
Jerzy Duda-Gracz’s painting inspires admiration or aversion. But the artist certainly possessed an excellent understanding of the realities in which he lived, perceptive powers of observation and a keen eye. He was thoroughly familiar with 19th- and 20th-century culture. On numerous occasions, the painting of the Young Poland movement served as a creative inspiration for him. His sensitivity to colour, which he used very consciously, and his ability to employ the means of painterly expression creatively also deserve great recognition.
His paintings contain numerous references to Polish culture; the artist depicted native villages and towns, and people of flesh and blood. In his work, he used symbols understood within the local cultural context. As his daughter repeatedly said in interviews, Jerzy Duda-Gracz could not have lived and worked anywhere other than Poland. His work is deeply rooted in these realities. He liked this country very much, although he sometimes mocked its weaknesses.
Jerzy Duda-Gracz described all his works with a consecutive number and the year in which they were created. He intended this to motivate himself to continue working systematically. For art historians researching the artist’s work, it is also an excellent tool enabling accurate cataloguing and helping to prevent forgeries.
The exhibition at the Museum of Ceramics will be open until the end of April. Tickets are priced at PLN 4 (regular), PLN 2 (reduced) and PLN 1 (children and school students). The exhibitions can be visited during the Museum’s opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., and Sunday, 11:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. Admission is free on Thursdays.
A catalogue of the Jerzy Duda-Gracz works presented at the exhibition, published by the Karkonosze Museum in Jelenia Góra, can be purchased at the Museum for PLN 12.