Maria Albin Bończa-Boniecki (1908–1995) was a Polish artist. A survivor of the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

Majdanek Majdanek (or Lublin) was a Nazi concentration and extermination camp built and operated by the SS on the outskirts of the city of Lublin during the German occupation of Poland in World War II. It had three gas chambers, two wooden gallows, ...

, he took part in the

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...

and upon liberation from

German POW camp In Germany, stalag (; ) was a term used for prisoner-of-war camps. Stalag is a contraction of "Stammlager", itself short for ''Kriegsgefangenen-Mannschaftsstammlager'', literally "main camp for enlisted prisoners of war" (officers were kept i ...

s settled in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He emigrated to the

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

in 1957.

Biography

Early life

Boniecki's father, Antoni a Polish patriot, was deported to

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

when Boniecki was five. Boniecki's mother, Stanisława, chose to follow with her children. The circumstances following the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

produced an opportunity for Boniecki, his mother and his siblings to slip away. With much difficulty they found a way to Poland, arriving in 1921. Boniecki studied at the Academy of Fine Arts 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 graduated in 1929. He produced many sculptures before the war, notably ''Birth of Thought'',Camden, Marian Louise (1983-1-9). "Artists were formed in the fires of suffering". ''Eastern Oklahoma Catholic'', p.20. presently held at the

National Museum, Warsaw The National Museum in Warsaw (, MNW) is a national museum in Warsaw, one of the largest museums in Poland and the largest in the capital. It comprises a rich collection of ancient art (Art of ancient Egypt, Egyptian, Art in ancient Greece, Greek, ...

. He was awarded a permanent membership of Zachęta, the Polish Masters National Museum of Fine Arts.Scheiner, Sid (1961-12-07) "Englewood State Bank to Sponsor Art Exhibit by Talented Refugee Couple". ''Englewood Herald and Enterprise and Press'', p.6.

World War II

After the war broke out, Boniecki joined the Polish underground resistance. In 1939 he worked as a volunteer medic,Rosen, Philip & Apfelbaum, Nina (2002). ''Bearing Witness: A Resource Guide to Literature, Poetry, Art, Music, and Videos by Holocaust Victims and Survivors''. p.128. Greenwood Publishing Group. , . and from 1940 to 1942 took part in

counterintelligence Counterintelligence (counter-intelligence) or counterespionage (counter-espionage) is any activity aimed at protecting an agency's Intelligence agency, intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering informati ...

in Warsaw, Sub-district II under the pseudonym "Adam". He was arrested by the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

in October 1942 and imprisoned and interrogated at the infamous

Pawiak prison Pawiak () was a prison built in 1835 in Warsaw, Congress Poland. During the January 1863 Uprising, it served as a transfer camp for Poles sentenced by Imperial Russia to deportation to Siberia. During the World War II German occupation of ...

. Thence he was sent to

concentration camp. Despite being a subject of Nazi experiments and appalling conditions at the camp, Boniecki continued fashioning sculptures out of whatever he could find to encourage hope and endurance in his fellow prisoners, and in memory of those murdered. His heavily symbolic sculptures included:Boniecki, Maria Albin (1961-07-13). "Rzeźby Jedyne w Historii" (Sculptures Unique in History). ''Polish Daily News'', p.6. * ''The Frog'' (fountain) * ''The Tortoise'' * ''The Three Eagles Mausoleum'' (also known as the ''Column of Three Eagles'') * ''The Seal with Fish'' * ''The Lizard'' * ''The Shrine'' When presented with an opportunity, Boniecki proposed a sculpture of three eagles to the camp officials, who accepted the offer, believing the eagles were a German symbol. But the Three Eagles Mausoleum that he produced symbolized, among other things, the freedom of Poland, brotherhood, and triumph. Some human ashes of the victims of the gas chambers were secretly placed within the sculpture. The Three Eagles Mausoleum was destroyed after the war and a reconstruction was created in 1962 by Stanisław Strzyżyński, by order of the Polish government and against Boniecki's wishes. This reconstruction (see External links) remains on display at the

Majdanek Museum The Majdanek State Museum () is a memorial museum and education centre founded in the fall of 1944 on the grounds of the Nazi Germany Majdanek death camp located in Lublin, Poland. It was the first museum of its kind in the world, devoted entire ...

. At the same time, Boniecki was the chief of section V of

Wachlarz Wachlarz (, '' folding fan'') was a Polish World War II resistance organization formed by the Armia Krajowa for sabotage duties behind the German Eastern Front, outside of the Polish borders. Its commanders were Lieutenant Colonel Jan Włodarki ...

, and gathered information within the camp for delegates of the

Polish government-in-exile The Polish government-in-exile, officially known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in exile (), was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Poland of September 1939, and the subsequent Occupation ...

. Information was smuggled in and out of the camp routinely. With the help of the

Polish Home Army The Home Army (, ; abbreviated AK) was the dominant resistance movement in German-occupied Poland during World War II. The Home Army was formed in February 1942 from the earlier Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Armed Resistance) established in the a ...

, Boniecki escaped in 1944 and, rather than fleeing the country, resumed his counterintelligence activities. He took part in the

and was again captured by the Nazis. He passed through the German prisoner-of-war camps at Lamsdorf, Gross Born, and finally Sandbostel, where he was liberated by British forces.

Post-war

Boniecki settled in Paris where he met his artist wife Krystyna Boniecki (née Binental), daughter of the noted musicologist, , himself murdered with his wife, Krystyna's mother, at

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) d ...

. The Bonieckis continued sculpting and painting, and also developed educational toys for children, among them a tactile alphabet for the blind."French Couple New to Denver Turn Out Kit to Help Blind See". (1958-6-21). ''Rocky Mountain News'', p.32. Note: the paper later published a correction of the nationality of the Boniecki couple. In 1957 the couple moved to

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, USA, and became US citizens in 1964. Later they moved to

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...

. He died aged 87 and was buried in Rose Hill Cemetery and Memorial Park, Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Solo exhibits

* "Polish Masters Exhibitions", National Art Museum in Warsaw * "Polish Artists Exhibitions", National Art Gallery in Warsaw * City Hall in Polish Silesia, Bielsko-Biala * "Exhibition of Polish Artists Association in Paris", Polish Seminary in Paris * "Esposizione Internazionale di Arte Sacra", Pontificia Academia del Pantheon, Rome * International House,

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

* Englewood State Bank,

Englewood, Colorado The City of Englewood is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 33,659 at the 2020 United States census. Englewood is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan S ...

* "Millenium of Poland", Colorado University,

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city in Boulder County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most ...

* Creative Art Gallery, Denver, Colorado

Permanent works available in public space

* ''The Tortoise'', State Museum at Majdanek (original concrete) * ''The Column of Three Eagles'', State Museum at Majdanek (reconstruction) * ''The Lizard'', State Museum at Majdanek (original concrete) * ''St. Francis D'Assises'', Museum in Rome (model, bronze) * ''Annunciation'', Polish Church in Rome (tabernacle, bronze) * ''Tribute to General Marquis de Lafeyette'', Civic Center Park,

(plaque, bronze - see External Links) * ''St. Francis D'Assises'', Museum in Rome (model, bronze) * ''The Seal'', in front of the Children's Hospital, Lublin (fountain, bronze)

Military awards

* Cross of Valor (London, 1942) * Cross of Valor (1944)

References

External links

State Museum at Majdanek - Official Site

Reconstruction of the Three Eagles Mausoleum

Waymarking: Tribute to General Marquis de Lafeyette
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boniecki, Maria Albin 1908 births 1995 deaths Polish emigrants to the United States Home Army members Majdanek concentration camp survivors Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw alumni 20th-century Polish sculptors