Stanisławski’s interests also include the theatre of the sky illuminated by a sunshade, saturated with sunset purple or covered with dramatically bent clouds hanging over fields frozen in silence, an infinite Ukrainian steppe, the wrinkled surface of the river or a monumental massif of the Tatra Mountains (Sky, 1902/1903; Moonlight Night, 1903; Wind, 1903/1904; Spring at Krzemionki in Kraków, 1906; Garda Lake II, 1906). The meandering Dnieper river in Stanisławski’s landscapes has a nostalgic expression, widely spilled, escaping with a wavy brushstroke far into a lowland landscape (Violet Dnieper, 1903; Cloud over the Dnieper River, 1903; Kiev – View of the Dnieper River, 1903; Blue Dnieper, 1904; Sapphire Dnieper, 1904). For Stanisławski, grain fields (Haystacks, 1903; Stacks of Grain, 1903) are as symbolically meaningful a motif as fragments of old architecture (Fortress in Verona, 1902; Belfry of the Saint Sophia Church in Kiev, ca. 1903; Waza Gate in Kiev, 1903; Siena Cathedral, 1903; San Marco Church in Venice, 1904; Helm of the St. Mary’s Tower in Kraków, ca. 1904).
In the mature phase of Stanisławski’s work there is a significant synthesis of forms. The landscape is summarised into several planes with richly textured spots of colour; its elements are defined by a fast, spontaneous brush movement. The small format of paintings created mainly on cardboard and wooden boards is also characteristic of the artist. As Zenon Przesmycki used to say: ‘Stanisławski’s small pictures become big windows on nature’.
The artist also transposes the motifs of his oil paintings into the language of colourful lithography by experimenting with various chromatic arrangements (St. Mark’s Church in Venice). By modulating colourful harmonies, he gives different expression to particular versions of his landscapes, evokes various shades of melancholy, symbolises a spiritual element that constantly rejuvenates and still penetrates nature in a different way. In his lithographs he also adapted patterns inspired by Japanese woodcuts, flattening and additively piling up composition plans, giving them an asymmetrical balance (Tyniec upon Kraków, 1903).
Originally written in Polish by Irena Kossowska, Institute of Art, Polish Academy of Sciences, November 2002, translated into English by P. Grabowski, December 2019