Alfred Jan Maksymilian Kowalski (Alfred ''Wierusz''-Kowalski; 11 October 184916 February 1915) was a Polish painter and representative of the Munich School.

Life

He was born on 11 October 1849 in

Suwałki Suwałki (; ; or סוּוואַלק) is a city in northeastern Poland with a population of 69,206 (2021). It is the capital of Suwałki County and one of the most important centers of commerce in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. A relatively young ci ...

to father Teofil Kowalski of the Wieruszowa

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

and mother Teofilia (née Siewierska). Wierusz-Kowalski settled in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

in 1876 after studies in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, and

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

. He studied for a year at the

Munich Academy of Fine Arts The Academy of Fine Arts, Munich (, also known as Munich Academy) is one of the oldest and most significant art academies in Germany. It is located in the Maxvorstadt district of Munich, in Bavaria, Germany. In the second half of the 19th centur ...

, and worked under

Józef Brandt Józef Brandt (1841 in Szczebrzeszyn – 1915 in Radom) was a Polish painter best known for his paintings of battles in Polish history. Life Brandt studied in Warsaw in the school of J.N. Leszczynski and at the Noblemen's Institute. In 1858 he ...

and Alexander von Wagner. In 1890 he was nominated as an honorary professor of the Munich Academy. He was the most popular Polish painter in Munich, alongside Józef Brandt. His paintings received medals at numerous art exhibitions and were sought-after by collectors and German art dealers. He painted landscapes, generic and historical scenes. After his journey to Africa in 1903 he also undertook oriental themes. His works were sold mostly on the German market and many of them ended in private collections in Germany and the United States. Some of his paintings can be seen in collections of Polish museums. Kowalski's ''Lone Wolf'' was the most famous and one of his most reproduced paintings, which gained great popularity especially in the United States. He died on 16 February 1915 and was initially buried at the Munich Waldfriedhof Cemetery. His remains were later transferred to the

Powązki Cemetery Powązki Cemetery (; ), also known as Stare Powązki (), is a historic necropolis located in Wola district, in the western part of Warsaw, Poland. It is the most famous cemetery in the city and one of the oldest, having been established in 179 ...

. In 1972, a permanent exhibition of his works was opened in the District Museum in

Selected paintings

File:Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski - Samotny wilk.jpg, ''Lone Wolf'' File:Wierusz-KowalskiAlfred.PostojUlanow.1877.ws.jpg, ''Ulans Stop'', 1877 File:Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski - The peasant wedding.jpg, ''The Peasant Wedding'', 1915, Private collection File:Alfred Kowalski-Wierusz - Stado wilków.jpg, ''A Pack of Wolves'', Private collection File:Alfred von Wierusz-Kowalski - Abendliche Kutschfahrt.jpg, ''Evening Carriage Ride'' File:Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski - Kulig.jpg, ''Horse-drawn Sleigh'', Private collection Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski - Z rozkazem wojennym w Maroku.jpg, ''Scene in Morocco'', National Museum in Wrocław

References

External links

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Paintings
1849 births 1915 deaths People from Suwałki People from Augustów Governorate Polish male painters Artists from Congress Poland Painters from the Russian Empire 19th-century Polish painters 19th-century German male artists 20th-century Polish painters 20th-century Polish male artists Academy of Fine Arts, Munich alumni Munich School {{Poland-painter-stub

Life

Selected paintings

See also

References

External links