Mistyka hiszpańska na gruncie malarstwa Akademii Sztuk Pięknych w Krakowie przełomu XX i XXI wieku
The Spanish mysticism in paintings by artists from the Fine Arts Academy in Krakow at the turn of the 21st century

Summary/Abstract: During the last two decades the works of teachers from the Painting Department of the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow: Grzegorz Bednarski, Katarzyna Makieła-Organisty, Janusz Matuszewski, Mirosław Sikorski, Edyta Sobieraj, Zbigniew Sprycha or Wojciech Szybist reveal traces of inspiration by the Spanish Golden Age. In this respect, paintings by Krakow artists stand out against other works of contemporary art both in Poland and globally. Their art should be discussed in the context of early modern meditatio mortis and tenebristic „baroqueism”, to which the artists themselves readily admit. The point of departure (frequently referred to as homage) are mystic visions, portraits by El Greco, Francisco de Zurbarán’s bodegóns or eschatological „death hieroglyphics” by Juan de Valdés Léal. References to works by the Iberian masters are accompanied by links to Carmelite writings or Jesuit mystics. Formal and ideological analysis also allows us to ask a question of the possibility of presenting the „mystic theology” described by St. Theresa of the Infant Jesus, St. John of the Cross or St. Ignatius of Loyola in contemporary religious paintings.

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