Polish graphic artist, illustrator, educator, and artistic activist. Born July 25, 1929 in Warsaw, died April 22, 1990 in Warsaw.
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Halina Chrostowska was the daughter of Stanisław Ostoja-Chrostowski, an exceptional graphic artist of the interwar period. She studied painting and graphic design at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw between 1946 and 1950, a year in which she began to teach graphic design at her alma mater - something she continued to do almost to her death. She headed her own applied graphics studio at the school from 1962 to 1989. At the same time she was active in the Association of Polish Visual Artists, occupying several positions within the organization.
She debuted at a time when Polish art was subject to the dictates of Socialist Realist doctrine. During the first half of the 1950s her series of etchings titled W walce / In Battle, Powstanie Kościuszkowskie / The Kościuszko Insurrection, and Z PGR-u / From the State Cooperative Farm won her prizes at official state art presentations and salons like the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Polish National Visual Arts Exhibitions.
A new tendency appeared in Chrostowska's art around 1956; namely, she showed a passion for formal and technical experimentation, which in time lead her to blur the boundary between her paintings and her work in print graphics, something accomplished in several stages. The artist began by creating black and white prints, focusing in her experiments on textures, as evident in the abstract Astralny / Astral series (1957) or the figurative Komedianci / Comedians (1961-1963). At times she combined metal plates with linoleum engravings and woodcuts. In 1968 she added color to her works, using it initially to create a series of Portrety / Portraits and subsequently, in 1969, her colorful Figury / Figures. Critics often noted the connection between Chrostowska's prints and parallel currents in Informel painting, and in the 1970s attention shifted to the liveliness and "psychedelic" magic of her colors, thought to bring her works closer to Pop Art.
A health problem (strained wrists) forced her to suspend her laborious printing processes in 1973. This was the time of the Ręce / Hands drawing series, which the artist printed using her own, paint-covered hands. By 1975 her health was restored completely and she proceeded to produce additional compositions in the series she had abandoned two years earlier. In 1977 she began to create one-off prints combining graphic techniques with painting and collage. In 1986 Chrostowska was diagnosed with cancer. She would return to her work, however, and in 1988 expanded her skills to include silk-screening and continued to experiment with painting.
Selected exhibitions and prizes:
- 1955 - International competition and exhibition organized during the 5th World Festival of Students and Youth in Warsaw (2nd prize and Silver Medal)
- 1959 - 1st Biennale of Young Artists, Paris
- 1960 - 2nd International Graphic Design Biennale, Tokyo (Ohara Museum Prize)
- 1961 - 6th Biennale of Art, Sao Paulo
- 1970 - 2nd International Graphic Design Biennale, Florence (Gold Medal)
Author: Maryla Sitkowska, Museum of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, November 2001.