Jan Chryzostom Redler, also Johann Chrysostomus Redler, (18th century) was a Polish sculptor. His exact date of birth or death is not known. He worked mainly 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 ...

and

Białystok Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the List of cities and towns in Poland, tenth-largest city in Poland, second in terms of population density, and thirteenth in area. Biał ...

Personal life

Redler was born probably in

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

. In 1737 at the collegiate church in Warsaw Redler married Anne Marie Kitz. The witness at the wedding was another famous sculptor

John George Plersch John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

Career

In 1743 he worked with carving decoration in the

Branicki Palace, Warsaw The Branicki Palace ( ) is an 18th-century magnate's mansion in Warsaw, Poland. Situated at the junction of ''Podwale'' and '' Miodowa'' Streets, it was constructed for the aristocratic Branicki-Gryf family in the Rococo style. The palace is known ...

Jan Klemens Branicki Count Jan Klemens Branicki (also known as Jan Kazimierz Branicki; 21 September 1689 – 9 October 1771) was a Polish nobleman, magnate and Hetman, Field Crown Hetman of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between 1735 and 1752, and Great Cro ...

. In 1745, he produced decorative work for the Czartoryski Palace in

Puławy Puławy (, also written Pulawy) is a city in eastern Poland, in Lesser Poland's Lublin Voivodeship, at the confluence of the Vistula and Kurówka River, Kurówka Rivers. Puławy is the capital of Puławy County. The city's 2019 population was Cen ...

, including the creation of stairs parade. In 1749-1750 he made statues of the

four evangelists In Christian tradition, the Four Evangelists are Matthew the Apostle, Matthew, Mark the Evangelist, Mark, Luke the Evangelist, Luke, and John the Evangelist, John, the authors attributed with the creation of the four canonical Gospel accounts ...

to adorn the gates of Holy Trinity church in

Tykocin Tykocin (; ) is a small town in north-eastern Poland, with 2,010 inhabitants (2012), located on the Narew river, in Białystok County in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is one of the oldest towns in the region, with its historic center designated a ...

. In 1750 Redler was employed again by Branicki to do sculptural decorations of the

Branicki Palace, Białystok Branicki Palace () is a historical edifice in Białystok, Poland. It was developed on the site of an earlier building in the first half of the 18th century by Jan Klemens Branicki, a wealthy Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth hetman, into a resid ...

. These included sculptures for the garden, interior staircase, and two other monumental sculptures: "Hercules fighting the dragon," and "Hercules fighting the hydra", which in 1757 is set between the initial and honorary courtyard. Around 1758 he created the statue of

St. John of Nepomuk John of Nepomuk (or John Nepomucene) (; ; ) ( 1345 – 20 March 1393) was a saint of Bohemia (a western part of what is now the Czech Republic) who was drowned in the Vltava river at the behest of King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia. Later accounts st ...

, which was set at the church in

Szczyty-Dzięciołowo Szczyty-Dzięciołowo () is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Orla, within Bielsk County, Podlaskie Voivodeship, in north-eastern Poland. It lies approximately north-east of Orla, east of Bielsk Podlaski, and south of the regi ...

. From 1752 to at least 1763 Redler performed in stages sculptural decorations for Potocki Palace in

Radzyń Podlaski Radzyń Podlaski is a town in eastern Poland, about north of Lublin, with 15,808 inhabitants (2017). The town has been part of the Lublin Voivodeship since 1999, previously it was part of the Biała Podlaska Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the c ...

. He was also the author of unspecified work in 1755, 1757 and 1758 for

Michał Fryderyk Czartoryski Prince Michał Fryderyk Czartoryski (1696–1775) was a Polish nobleman, the Duke of Klewań and , magnate, and Knight of the Order of the White Eagle (from 1726). He headed Poland's Czartoryski " Familia". He served as Steward of Lithuania fr ...

at Voŭčyn. The artist was also employed by King Stanisław August Poniatowski for the design and implementation of the

Ujazdów Castle Ujazdów Castle () is a castle in the historic Ujazdów district, between Ujazdów Park (''Park Ujazdowski'') and the Royal Baths Park (''Łazienki Królewskie''), in Warsaw, Poland. Its beginnings date to the 13th century, and it was rebuilt s ...

interior stucco decoration of the Royal Palace for the Hall of the Horse Guards Crown, the Grand Staircase and the Peace Marble. Redler is credited with the authorship of several sculptures adorning the railing of the stairs connecting the garden terraces of the

Wilanów Palace Wilanów Palace (, ) is a former royal palace located in the Wilanów district of Warsaw, Poland. It was built between 1677 and 1696 for the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania John III Sobieski according to a design by architect Augustyn ...

, as well as a

maenad In Greek mythology, maenads (; ) were the female followers of Dionysus and the most significant members of his retinue, the '' thiasus''. Their name, which comes from μαίνομαι (''maínomai'', “to rave, to be mad; to rage, to be angr ...

satire in front of the Palace featuring the Water and Satyr with a sundial in front of Little White House in the Royal Baths, the culmination of building facades Prażmowskich the

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

suburb of Warsaw, decorated with sculptures in the garden arbor Primate's Palace Street. He was also responsible for sculptures adorning the facades of the gate at the

Brühl Palace, Warsaw The Brühl Palace (), also known as the Sandomierski or Ossoliński Palace, was a palatial residence at Piłsudski Square in central Warsaw, Poland. It was one of the largest palaces and one of the finest examples of rococo architecture in pre-W ...

Style

Redler is one of the most important representatives of Warsaw

rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

sculpture. He specialized in stone sculpture of secular characters, mainly mythological and allegorical sculptures, but also pursued sculpture in stucco and wood. He has collaborated with the architect

Jakub Fontana Jakub Fontana (1710 – 13 April 1773) was a Polish architect of Swiss Italian origin, a practitioner of the Baroque and Neoclassical styles. He was court architect to the Polish king. He was knighted in 1764. Jakub Fontana had a notable brother n ...

, who is recognized as the designer of many of his works.

References

* Catherine Mikocka-Rachubowa, Redler Johann Chrysostomus in: Dictionary Polish and foreign artists working in Poland, Warsaw, 2007, Vol 8 {{DEFAULTSORT:Redler, Jan Chryzostom Polish sculptors Polish male sculptors Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown