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New Cleopatra

Jozef Mehoffer

Basic information

ID: Ж-168
Author: Jozef Mehoffer
Name: New Cleopatra
Date of creation: 1899
Technique: oil painting
Material: canvas oil
Dimensions: 70.5 x 65 cm (height x width)

Additionally

Type: painting
Genre: portraiture
Provenance: Collection of Leon Pininski
Exposition: Lozinski Palace

Information about author

Author: Jozef Mehoffer
Author in the original: Józef Mehoffer
Artist's lifetime: 1869–1946
Country: Austro-Hungarian Empire, Poland
Biography: Jozef Mehoffer possessed a versatile artistic talent. A master of easel and monumental painting, a stage designer, graphic artist, poster designer, and stained-glass and textile designer, he was one of the leaders of Polish Art Nouveau. This movement became known as "Young Poland" ("Młoda Polska"). Mehoffer was educated at the Faculty of Law of the Jagiellonian University, and in 1887–1894 studied at the School of Fine Arts in Kraków under the supervision of Izydor Jabłoński, Józef Unierzyski, Władysław Łuszczkiewicz, and Jan Matejko.
In 1889–1890, he continued his studies at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts, and in 1891–1896 also refined his skills in Paris: initially at the Académie Julian and the National School of Decorative Arts (École Nationale des Arts Décoratifs), then at the Académie Colarossi under Joseph Blanc and Gustave Courtois, and from 1892 at the National School of Fine Arts (École Nationale des Beaux-Arts) in the studio of Léon Bonnat. From 1905, he was a professor at the Kraków Academy of Fine Arts, and later served as its rector.
Jozef Mehoffer was married to Jadwiga Janakowska and had a son, Zbigniew. The artist lived primarily in Kraków but also travelled extensively, notably to Italy and Switzerland. He achieved international recognition for his stained-glass windows, produced in 1895–1936 for the Gothic Collegiate Church of Saint Nicholas in Fribourg (Switzerland). The artist died of tuberculosis on 8 July 1946 in Wadowice and was buried at the Rakowicki Cemetery in Kraków. A museum dedicated to the artist was established in Jozef Mehoffer's house in Kraków, at 26 Krupnicza Street.

Object description

The work shows a half-length image of a woman on an olive-grey background with stylistic representations of snakes/grass snakes. The woman's black hair is disheveled, her body and head are turned three-quarters to the left and her gaze is also directed to the left. On her shoulders is a red kerchief that covers her breasts, leaving a narrow neckline open; the woman's arms are folded across her chest.

Inscriptions

On the top left is the author's signature: "Józef Mehoffer 99". On the reverse side of the canvas: "Państwowe Zbiory Stuki 3895".

Legal regulation

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery