Beksiński’s painting tour

This time we will do a very special tour about the most famous Polish post war painter: Zdzisław Beksiński.

One of the only three pernament galleries of his paintings is for a few years exhibited in Nowa Huta Cultural center, Kraków.

Zdzisław Beksiński (1929-2005) is a kind of a marmite of Polish painters. You love it or hate it, nothing in between! He is also a rare example of totally artistically independent creator. He didn't talk much about his paintings, very rarely attend to art exhibitions of his paintings. He simply claimed that conversations about his art limits his artistic freedom. Therefore he will not paint what he wants anymore but what his fans expect him to paint instead. That was one of the main reason of conflict between him and his art dealer and promoter, Polish born French lawyer and law proffesor Piotr Dmochowski.

There is a great scene in the movie "Last family" about Beksiński family. When Dmochowski visited them in Warsaw, he was surprise to see normal smiling family in block of flat, not in the dark horror style castle. Beksiński answered that: "Well we just hide all the spiders and skeletons in wardrobes and at neighbors apartments".

Definitelly Zdzisław Beksiński as witty, smiling and positive person contradict to his very often dark and doomsday looking paintings. But was it really a typical regular familly? First of all Zdzisław Beksiński as succesfull painter in communist Poland was a person who could afford big apartment for himself and smaller one for his only son, Tomasz in Polish capitol Warsaw. In this apartment two old ladies who lived with them died, Zdzisław's mother and his mother in law. Later also his wife died because of cancer in the same place. Then his son Tomasz commited a suicide in his flat nearby. Finally in 2005 one of the strongest fear and nightmare of Zdzisław came true. He have been mordered in his own flat.

No surprise that soon after many people said that, because of Beksiński's art his family was cursed and doomed... which make his art even more popular and legendary.

Tour will be guided by Pawel Mrozowicz, profesional, licensed Kraków tour guide with 16 years of experience, food bloger, art and movie enthusiast.