The opening of the Michał Twerd Gallery, located at II Liceum Ogólnokształcące in Bolesławiec, took place on Wednesday, October 12. “The idea of creating this gallery had been taking shape in my mind for 10 years,” said during the ceremony Mirosław Sakowski, headmaster of II LO. “I was inspired by ‘Autumn Meetings with Colour’, exhibitions that Michał organized at our school before retiring.”
“We want our students to exhibit their work at the Michał Twerd Gallery and, through this, develop their passions and talents,” the head of the institution emphasized.
Michał Twerd also spoke. “This undertaking is both a surprise and an honor for me,” he said. “I always thought that what I did at this school was something normal. I was glad that I could pursue my ideas here,” he added modestly.
“The headmaster said that the idea of creating this gallery had been maturing in him for 10 years. This is further proof that good ideas are excellent, even when they take so long to emerge,” noted Dariusz Kwaśniewski of the Bolesławiec County Board. “For years I have repeated that the quality of education is not only the quality of the façade. What Mirosław Sakowski and Michał Twerd have undertaken is yet another confirmation of the idea that a school is its people: teachers, former teachers and students. An informal, yet genuine cultural institution has been created at II LO—a place where every Bolesławiec resident with passion and talent will be able to present their work.”
Michał Twerd. He worked as an art teacher for more than 40 years. He was associated with II Liceum Ogólnokształcące (formerly the Teacher Training School) from 1981 to 2000, when he retired. He founded the School Painting Gallery—the only gallery of its kind in the city and one of the few in the voivodeship—in which he presented works by the school’s students and graduates. From 1991 onward, he organized annual painting exhibitions at the school called “Autumn Meetings with Colour”, presenting the artistic achievements of art teachers from Bolesławiec (during the “Autumn Meetings...” works by more than 30 artists were displayed). He has participated in more than 40 group and solo exhibitions, including in Legnica, Wrocław, Warsaw and Radom. Recipient of the Minister of National Education Award (1991). He currently lives near Lublin.
(information: ii)