Date: 1993
Size: 25 x 39 inches
Artist: Mieczyslaw Gorowski
About the Artist: Mieczyslaw Gorowski (1941 - 2011) is a Polish graphic artist. Although dabbling in interior design and painting as well, the artist claims "For many years I have been creating posters - this is the main direction of my artistic and design activity". Gorowski's academic career revolved around the Cracow Academy of Fine Arts, as he studied there from 1959 - 1966, and later taught as a professor on the Faculty of Interior Design. Starting in 1966, Gorowski created over 400 posters that can now be found in galleries all over Europe and North America. He is the recipient of several major awards, including the International Art Directors Club Exhibition (New York) in 1987, and the International Posters Salon (Paris, France) in both 1986 and 1987.
About the Poster: Beginning in the 1950s and through the 1980s, the Polish School of Posters combined the aesthetics of painting with the succinctness and simple metaphor of the poster. It developed characteristics such as painterly gesture, linear quality, and vibrant colors, as well as a sense of individual personality, humor, and fantasy. It was in this way that the polish poster was able to make the distinction between designer and artist less apparent.
Polish posters have come to stand apart from the advertising design conventions fostered in Europe during the 20th century. It was during the communist regime, a time when culture was closely monitored by the state, that Polish artists found liberation in poster art. Ironically, this foremost public art form became ground for individual expression. During that period, the cultural institutions, of theatre and cinema especially, flourished as they were funded by government agencies. Artists freshly out of the fine arts academy flocked towards poster production as the demand for this art was rapidly growing. The result became some of the most unique and expressive posters the world has ever seen - and artworks in themselves.
About the play: A 35-year-old Russian man named Nikolai Ivanov is having a midlife crisis. He has fallen out of love with his wife Anna (who sacrificed everything for him), he is deeply in debt and in danger of losing his estate, and most troubling, he is severely depressed. He was once a highly successful member of the County Counsel, a man full of laughter, passion, and love, but now all he can do is complain about his life. As aware of this change as he is, he can’t seem to shake himself out of it, and it affects everyone around him. His wife Anna is dying of tuberculosis, and the doctor recommends that she take a trip to Crimea; but Ivanov can’t afford it. His distant relative Borkin, who is in charge of the estate, is full of ideas about how to make money, but Ivanov is too irritated by his company to take him seriously. The beautiful, intelligent daughter of Ivanov’s boss, Sasha, confesses her love for him, but even the excitement of that can’t snap him out of his morose mood. The cold Russian winters that we know so well from Chekhov’s other works seem to be a metaphor for Ivanov’s soul, and the darkness consuming him leads him and those who love him to a tragic end. (stageagent.com)
The poster is in overall good condition and ready to frame.