Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter (born Jerzy Szymonowicz; c. 1660 – c. 1711) was a prominent

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

painter and engraver of the Baroque era. He was court painter to king John III Sobieski and a Polish–Lithuanian

noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, King George Island * Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Noble Peak, Wiencke Island * Noble Rocks, Graham Land Australia * Noble Island, Gr ...

. He is considered one of the most accomplished painters of Classical Baroque in Poland. His works combine the classical approach with native elements.

Life and professional career

Siemiginowski was of

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

origin. He was born in Lwów (Lviv) in the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi- confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Poland and Lithuania ru ...

(today part of

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

) and was the son of a painter Jerzy Szymonowicz and Teodozja née Korunka. In 1677, he was entrusted to king John III Sobieski by his parents and was sent by the king to study at the

Accademia di San Luca The Accademia di San Luca (the "Academy of Saint Luke") is an Italian academy of artists in Rome. The establishment of the Accademia de i Pittori e Scultori di Roma was approved by papal brief in 1577, and in 1593 Federico Zuccari became its fi ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Before he went to Rome he probably spent at least a year, possibly two, in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. In Rome, he was trained by

Lazzaro Baldi Lazzaro Baldi ( – 30 March 1703) was an Italian painter and engraver of the Baroque period active mainly in Rome.

Luigi Garzi Luigi Garzi (1638 – 1721) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, whose work displayed heavy influences of the Bolognese painter, Guido Reni. Biography Born in Pistoia. He started learning from a poorly known landscape painter, Salomo ...

and

Carlo Maratta Carlo Maratta or Maratti (13 May 162515 December 1713) was an Italian painter, active mostly in Rome, and known principally for his classicizing paintings executed in a Late Baroque Classical manner. Although he is part of the classical tradition ...

. On 11 January 1682 he won an

contest with a set of two drawings: ''Construction of the Tower of Babel'' and ''God's anger caused by the building of the tower'', and in September of that year was admitted to the Academy as a member. While in Rome, he received the Knighthood of the Golden Spur and the title of ''Eques Auratus'' from Pope Innocent XI, and remained under the protecteion of the Pope's nephew Livio Odescalchi. Siemiginowski_Allegory_of_Autumn

Shortly after his return to Poland in 1684 he was ennobled by the king and took the name ''Eleuter'' (

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

for free, independent). In 1687 the king granted him the village Łuka near Złoczów ( Zolochiv) to confirm his nobility. After king John's death he became secretary to king

Augustus II the Strong Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as K ...

and was

court painter A court painter was an artist who painted for the members of a royal or princely family, sometimes on a fixed salary and on an exclusive basis where the artist was not supposed to undertake other work. Painters were the most common, but the cour ...

to Aleksander Benedykt Sobieski. At that time he still worked at the

Wilanów Wilanów () is a district of the city of Warsaw, Poland. It is home to historic Wilanów Palace, the "Polish Versailles," and second home to various Polish kings. History The first mentions of a settlement in the area can be traced to the 13t ...

( Sobieski's suburban palace) and supervised the construction of new palace wings. In 1701, he was adopted by the impoverished Siemiginowski noble family (he paid them a substantial sum for the privilege) and since that time he used their name. Siemiginowski was married four times and had 11 children. In 1704, he had a house in Warsaw and a manor house at Wielopole near Warsaw. He died probably between February 28, 1708, and March 13, 1711. Siemiginowski-Eleuter was the chief artist responsible for the decoration of the interior of the

Wilanów Palace Wilanów Palace ( pl, Pałac w Wilanowie, ) is a former royal palace located in the Wilanów district of Warsaw, Poland. Wilanów Palace survived Poland's partitions and both World Wars, and so serves as a reminder of the culture of the Polish s ...

near

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

. His painting style was heavily influenced by French artists of the Baroque. Similarities with plafonds by

Charles Le Brun Charles Le Brun (baptised 24 February 1619 – 12 February 1690) was a French painter, physiognomist, art theorist, and a director of several art schools of his time. As court painter to Louis XIV, who declared him "the greatest French artist of ...

in his works (especially the ceiling painting in the ''Pavillon de l'Aurore'' in the suburban Paris residence of Jean-Baptiste Colbert at Sceaux, 1671 or 1672) making his visit to Paris more probable. Influences of Carlo Maratta and Nicolas Poussin are also visible in his works (especially in his

plafond A plafond (French for "ceiling"), in a broad sense, is a (flat, vaulted or dome) ceiling. A plafond can be a product of monumental painting or sculpture. Picturesque plafonds can be painted directly on plaster (as a fresco, oil, glutinous, s ...

''Allegory of Spring'' in the Queen's Bedroom inspired by Maratta's ''Flora'' and ''Changes in the Kingdom of Flora'' by Poussin). He painted classicised portraits of members of the royal family and made engravings, including in collaboration with Charles de La Haye. Siemiginowski painted many frescoes, notable for their use of color. His subject ranged from dramatic scenes to peaceful landscapes. Among the most notable of his works are four plafonds of the four seasons in the Wilanów Palace. Siemiginowski established his own school of painting in Wilanów and was a renowned architect (co-designer of the Town Hall in Żółkiew (

Zhovkva Zhovkva ( uk, Жовква ; pl, Żółkiew; yi, זאָלקוואַ, translit=Zolkva; russian: Жо́лква, 1951–1992: ''Nesterov'') is a city in Lviv Raion, Lviv Oblast (region) of western Ukraine. Zhovkva hosts the administration of Z ...

) among others). Many of his

religious paintings Religion is usually defined as a social-cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, tra ...

in Warsaw (''Crucifixion'' in the Holy Cross Church, ''Transfiguration'' in the Capuchin Church among others) were destroyed during the extensive bombardment of the city by the Germans in 1944.

References

Bibliography

* .

Works in Wilanów Palace

Ceiling paintings

File:Siemiginowski Allegory of Winter.jpg, ''Allegory of Winter'', 1683 File:Siemiginowski Allegory of Spring.jpg, ''Allegory of Spring'', 1680s File:Siemiginowski Allegory of Summer.jpg, ''Allegory of Summer'', 1684−1686 File:Siemiginowski Allegory of Autumn.jpg, ''Allegory of Autumn'', between 1681−1682

Portraits

File:Siemiginowski Marie Casimire with children.jpg, ''Queen Marie Casimire with children'', 1684 File:Siemiginowski_Sobieski_at_the_Battle_of_Vienna.jpg, ''John III Sobieski at the Battle of Vienna'', 1686 File:Siemiginowski_Konstanty_Sobieski.jpg, ''Konstanty Władysław Sobieski'', c. 1690

External links

*
Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Siemiginowski-Eleuter, Jerzy 1660 births 1711 deaths 17th-century Polish painters 18th-century Polish–Lithuanian painters 18th-century male artists Court painters of Polish kings Polish people of Armenian descent Artists from Lviv Pupils of Carlo Maratta