Michael Kmit () (25 July 1910 in

Stryi Stryi (, ; ) is a city in Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine. It is located in the left bank of the Stryi (river), Stryi River, approximately south of Lviv in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains. It serves as the administrative center of Stryi R ...

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

– 22 May 1981 in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, Australia) was a Ukrainian

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

who spent twenty-five years in Australia. He is notable for introducing a

neo-Byzantine Neo-Byzantine architecture (also referred to as Byzantine Revival) was a Revivalism (architecture), revival movement, most frequently seen in religious, institutional and public buildings. It incorporates elements of the Byzantine architecture, ...

style of painting to Australia, and winning a number of major Australian art prizes including the

Blake Prize The Blake Prize, formerly the Blake Prize for Religious Art, is an List of Australian art awards, Australian art prize awarded for art that explores spirituality. Since the inaugural prize in 1951, the prize was awarded annually from 1951 to 2 ...

(1952) and the

Sulman Prize The Sir John Sulman Prize is one of Australia's longest-running art prizes, having been established in 1936. It is now held concurrently with the Archibald Prize, Australia's best-known art prize, and also with the Wynne Prize, at the Art Galler ...

(in both 1957 and 1970). In 1969 the Australian artist and art critic

James Gleeson James Timothy Gleeson (21 November 1915 – 20 October 2008) was an Australian artist. He served on the board of the National Gallery of Australia. Early life Gleeson was born in the Hornsby in 1915 and attended East Sydney Technical Colleg ...

described Kmit as "one of the most sumptuous colourists of our time".

Arrival in Australia

Michael Kmit studied ''at the ''

Academy of Fine Arts The following is a list of notable art schools. Accredited non-profit art and design colleges * Adelaide Central School of Art * Alberta College of Art and Design * Art Academy of Cincinnati * Art Center College of Design * The Art Institute ...

, Kraków, but due to the conflict in World War II, he was forced to leave his homeland and found himself a

displaced person Forced displacement (also forced migration or forced relocation) is an involuntary or coerced movement of a person or people away from their home or home region. The UNHCR defines 'forced displacement' as follows: displaced "as a result of perse ...

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

, Austria where he met Dorothea (Edda) in 1945. They married in

Landeck Landeck () is a city in the Austrian state of Tyrol, the capital of the district of Landeck. Geography Landeck is located in the Tyrolean Oberland in the west of the state at an elevation of about . The town is situated in the valley of the Inn ...

and later moved to

Bregenz Bregenz (; ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost states of Austria, state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switzerland in the wes ...

where his two daughters, Xenia & Tania (Tatiana) were born, in 1946 and 1948. While in post-war Europe Kmit studied under cubist

Fernand Léger Joseph Fernand Henri Léger (; February 4, 1881 – August 17, 1955) was a French painting, painter, sculpture, sculptor, and film director, filmmaker. In his early works he created a personal form of cubism (known as "tubism") which he gradually ...

in Paris, and futurist

Carlo Carrà Carlo Carrà (; February 11, 1881 – April 13, 1966) was an Italian painter and a leading figure of the Futurist movement that flourished in Italy during the beginning of the 20th century. In addition to his many paintings, he wrote a number ...

in Italy. Kmit

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

to Australia in 1949, as part of the Australian Government's immigration scheme. He was contracted to work in

for two years in a job selected for him by the Australian Government's employment service. He initially worked at a cement factory in

Villawood, New South Wales Villawood, a suburb of local government areas City of Canterbury-Bankstown and City of Fairfield, is 27 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. History The Aboriginal tribe of Gand ...

, and then as a railway porter as contracted reimbursement for his passage. But after Kmit met the artists

and

Paul Haefliger Paul Haefliger (8 February 1914 – March 1982) was an abstract painter, art critic, writer and printmaker. He was a major figures in the Sydney art world in the 1940s and 1950s and writing for ''Art in Australia'' and the ''Sydney Morning Her ...

, who were impressed with his work, he was introduced to other artists including

Donald Friend Donald Stuart Leslie Friend (6 February 1915 – 16 August 1989) was an Australian artist and diarist who lived much of his life overseas. He has been the subject of controversy since the posthumous publication of diaries in which he wrote about ...

and

Russell Drysdale Sir George Russell Drysdale (7 February 1912 – 29 June 1981), also known as Tass Drysdale, was an Australian artist. He won the prestigious Wynne Prize for ''Sofala (Drysdale), Sofala'' in 1947, and represented Australia at the Venice Biennal ...

. His artist friends later helped him find lodging at Merioola and work nearer to the artist community in Sydney. Painting at night, during the day Kmit worked as a railway porter and cleaner while he established himself "as one of Australia's best artists" of the time. He lived in Elizabeth Bay with his family until he moved to the United States.

Influence on Australian Art

Kmit's images, inspired by the

Byzantine style Byzantine architecture is the architecture of the Byzantine Empire, or Eastern Roman Empire, usually dated from 330 AD, when Constantine the Great established a new Roman capital in Byzantium, which became Constantinople, until the fall of the ...

of religious

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic Church, Catholic, and Lutheranism, Lutheran churches. The most common subjects include Jesus, Mary, mother of ...

painting, were well received in Australia for their fresh approach and new subjects. Labeled

, his paintings integrated stylized portraiture with geometric

cubist Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement which began in Paris. It revolutionized painting and the visual arts, and sparked artistic innovations in music, ballet, literature, and architecture. Cubist subjects are analyzed, broke ...

and constructivist forms, patterns and vivid colour. During the 1950s, before leaving for the United States at the latter end of the decade, Kmit was a major influence on many artists, particularly those of the

Merioola Group The Merioola Group, also known as the Sydney Charm School, was a group of Australian artists active in Sydney during the 1940s and early 1950s. The group was named after ''Merioola'', a Woollahra mansion where many of its members lived. Meriool ...

(also known as the "Charm School"). Gleeson described Kmit as "one of the most sumptuous colourists of our time". Paul Haefliger wrote: "Of all the foreign aspirants to art who have visited these shores since the war, Michael Kmit is the only one who has made an impression on the present generation of painters." After winning a string of awards including the

(1953) and the

(1957), he left Australia for the United States in 1958, residing in the San Francisco-Bay Area of California. His American period did not result in a lot of success and also, due to the end of his marriage, he went through a period of depression. Returning in 1965 his style and format had changed and the high praise for his work was replaced with cautious criticism. He married Norma Randall a few years after his return to Australia and his son Michael Kmit Junior was born in May, 1968. However, by the time
"Cassandra"
' (1979) was painted, only two years before his death, Kmit had returned to the previous vigour of his 1950s works.

Exhibitions

In 1951 Michael Kmit showed his work for the first time in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

at the Johnstone Gallery, where the owner Brian Johnstone intended to exhibit "the most creative work in Australia today", particularly that of "brilliant" younger artists. Until his death Kmit exhibited in numerous group shows throughout the Australian States of

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

and

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

, including selections for the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman prizes. Kmit was a member and exhibited with the Sydney branch of the

Contemporary Art Society The Contemporary Art Society (CAS) is an independent charity that champions the collecting of outstanding contemporary art and craft for UK museum collections. Since its founding in 1910 the organisation has donated over 10,000 works to museum ...

, the " Sydney Group" and the Society of Artists. He was also an honorary member, and exhibited with the Ukrainian Artists Society of Australia. A selection of exhibitions included: * 1951 — Contemporary Art Society (NSW) Annual Exhibition * 1952 — Society of Artists Spring Exhibition, Sydney * 1952 — Show of Sixes Annual Exhibition,

Macquarie Galleries Macquarie Galleries was a Sydney art museum, private art gallery established in 1925 by John Henry Young and Basil Burdett. It was located at "Strathkyle", 19 Bligh Street Sydney then moved to 40 King Street in 1945. From 1991 to 1993 it was lo ...

* 1952 — Contemporary Art Society (NSW) 14th Annual Exhibition * 1953 — Society of Artists Annual Exhibition, Department of Education Art Gallery, Sydney * 1953 — Show of Sixes Annual Exhibition,

* 1954 — Contemporary Art Society (NSW) Annual Exhibition * 1954 — Exhibited with the Sydney Group * 1956 — Society of Artists Annual Exhibition * 1956 — 'Contemporary Australian Painting', Pacific Loan Exhibition, Art Gallery of NSW and on board the '' SS Orcades'' * 1957 — Society of Artists Exhibition of drawings and prints. David Jones Art Gallery * 1957 — Show of Eights,

* 1965 — Dominion Galleries, Darlinghurst Sydney * 1965 — Australian Galleries, Melbourne * 1967 — Australian Painters Exhibition (Mertz Collection), orcoran Gallery of Art Washington DC, USA * 1968 — Solo exhibition, Von Bertouch Galleries, Newcastle * 1979 — Solo exhibition, Niagara Lane Galleries, Melbourne (7–27 June 1979) * 1974 — Group Show Official Opening of Phillip Bacon Galleries Queensland * 1979 — Solo exhibition in Holdsworth Galleries Woollahra, Sydney * 1980 — Solo Exhibition at the Fine Art Gallery, Western Australia * 1980 — Blake Exhibition in Sydney * 1982 — Solo exhibition, Von Bertouch Galleries, Newcastle (26 Feb – 14 Mar 1982) * 2010 — Centenary Exhibition (retrospective), Studio W – Woolloomooloo Sydney

Awards

* 1952 — Blake Prize for Religious Art (Second prize of 50 guineas) – with ''The Ascension'' * 1953 — Blake Prize for Religious Art with ''The Evangelist, John Mark'' * 1954 — Perth Prize for Contemporary Art with ''King's Cross Facade'' * 1955 — Critics Prize for Contemporary Art * 1956 — Darcy Morris Memorial Prize * 1957 — Sulman Prize — with ''The Voice of Silence'' * 1967 — Melrose Art Prize, Adelaide ($500) * 1970 — Sulman Prize — with ''Philopena''

Collections held

Art Gallery of New South Wales The Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW), founded as the New South Wales Academy of Art in 1872 and known as the National Art Gallery of New South Wales between 1883 and 1958, is located in The Domain, Sydney, Australia. It is the most import ...

Art Gallery of South Australia The Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA), established as the National Gallery of South Australia in 1881, is located in Adelaide. It is the most significant visual arts museum in the Australian state of South Australia. It has a collection of ...

Art Gallery of Western Australia The Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA) is a public art gallery that is part of the Perth Cultural Centre, in Perth. It is located near the Western Australian Museum and State Library of Western Australia and is supported and managed by the ...

Ballarat Fine Art Gallery The Art Gallery of Ballarat is the oldest regional art gallery in Australia. It was established in 1884 as the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery by a company of interested citizens led by James Oddie. It initially rented out the first floor of the Balla ...

, Ballarat
Cbus Collection of Australian Art
* Harold E. Mertz Collection of Australian Art, University of Texas, USA *

National Gallery of Australia The National Gallery of Australia (NGA), formerly the Australian National Gallery, is the national art museum of Australia as well as one of the largest art museums in Australia, holding more than 166,000 works of art. Located in Canberra in th ...

, Canberra *

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and list of most visited art museums in the world, most visited art mu ...

Queensland Art Gallery The Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) is an art museum located in South Bank, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The gallery is part of QAGOMA. It complements the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) building, situated only away. The Queensland Art Galle ...

Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery The Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) is a museum located in Hobart, Tasmania. The museum was established in 1846, by the Royal Society of Tasmania, the oldest Royal Society outside England. The TMAG receives 400,000 visitors annually. ...

* University collections at: **

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

University of Queensland The University of Queensland is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone ...

Monash University Monash University () is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Named after World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the ...

, Melbourne

Notes and references

Sources

* 'Michael Kmit Paintings 1953–1979', Niagara Lane Galleries, Melbourne, exhibition catalogue, 7–27 June 1979 * 'Michael Kmit', Von Bertouch Galleries, Newcastle, exhibition list, 26 Feb – 14 Mar 1982 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kmit, Michael 1910 births 1981 deaths Artists from Sydney 20th-century Australian painters Modern painters 20th-century Ukrainian painters 20th-century Ukrainian male artists Australian people of Ukrainian descent Ukrainian people of German descent Blake Prize for Religious Art winners Ukrainian male painters People from Stryi Ukrainian Artists Society of Australia