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Crimean Window

Roman Selskyi

Basic information

ID: Ж-6264
Author: Roman Selskyi
Name: Crimean Window
Technique: oil painting
Material: canvas oil
Dimensions: 112 x 81 cm (height x width)

Additionally

Type: painting
Genre: still life landscape
Provenance: Gifted by Roman Selskyi, 1984

Information about author

Author: Roman Selskyi
Author in the original: Roman Sielski
Artist's lifetime: 1903–1990
Biography: Roman Selskyi (1903–1990) is a renowned Ukrainian artist, the founder of the school of "Ukrainian colourism". Born in the Sokal region, he moved to Lviv in 1905. He received his first art lessons at the Lviv Gymnasium with Leon Dołżycki, visited the Free Academy (1918–1921) as a gymnasium student, where he first met Margit Reich. At the same time, Roman Selsky studied at the studio of Kazimierz Sichulski. Throughout the year, he visited the workshop of Oleksa Novakivskyi. From 1921 to 1922 studied at the Lviv Art and Industry School. Afterwards, he joined the Krakow Academy of Fine Arts, where his teachers were Kazimierz Sichulski, Jozef Mehoffer, Jozef Pankiewicz, and Felician Kowarski. In 1925–1926 he made his first trip to France with Roman Turin to the studio of J. Pankiewicz, where he meets Margit Reich and attends the Fernand Léger Académie Moderne. In 1928–29 travels between Paris and Corsica with Roman Turin and Margit Reich. In 1929 he becomes the first president of the Artes Artistic Association and participates in its exhibitions. In 1931 he married Margit Reich. He was a member of the Association of Independent Ukrainian Artists from 1932 to 1939 and participated in its exhibitions. In 1937 he leaves for the last time with his wife for Paris. Since 1947 he teaches at the Lviv Institute of Applied and Decorative Arts, in 1966 he became a professor. From 1940 to 1975 he takes part in exhibitions of the Union of Artists. 1969 – Exhibition "Artes" in Wroclaw. In 1976 he had his first personal exhibition in the Lviv Art Gallery. Roman Selskyi, being a teacher at the institute, had over twenty graduates of the institute's students in various fields. It is difficult to single out any particular style in the artist's work, there are influences of post-impressionism, mystical realism, surrealism, avant-garde and colourism. His plenary motifs have a special atmosphere – these are landscapes from the Carpathian Mountains, Crimea, Hel, the suburbs of Lviv. The artist had a remarkable talent as both artist and teacher, and not only for his students, but also for the many like-minded people who still call themselves "apprentices" without being his actual students.

Object description

With his wife, Margit Selska, the artist frequently travelled through Odesa and Kherson regions and visited Crimea. Among the artist's early landscapes, the still-life landscapes stand out: they are very distinctive and unlike the usual paintings in these genres. One of the artist's favourite motifs is the open window through which a view of a picturesque landscape is visible. In the composition's foreground is a wide-open window covered with a transparent curtain in a greenish-lilac colour. On the windowsill, from left to right, are arranged the following items: a white hat with a wide brim, a large white pitcher with red polka dots, and a bowl of grapes. One can see a village sprawled at the base of forested mountains through the window. Near one of the houses, on the brick pavement, sits a white rooster. The warm colour scheme and the simple, concise composition create an atmosphere of a quiet summer morning.

Inscriptions

In the lower right corner is the artist's signature: "R. Selskyi".

Legal regulation

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery

Crimean Window

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