Date: 1981
Size: 26 x 37.5 inches
Artist: Andrzej Klimowski
About the Artist: Andrzej Klimowski, who was born to Polish parents in London, retains strong links with Poland, where he lived and worked for some years. During his career he has made films and written graphic novels. He has designed theatre posters and book covers for leading publishers. He was head of Illustration at the Royal College of Art for many years, and is now Professor Emeritus. He continues to produce graphic novels with his wife Danusia Schejbal, and works in graphics and produces illustrations. He also makes films. His work has been the subject of a retrospective at the National Theatre, London. (klimowski.com)
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 Opera: Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman) is an opera by Richard Wagner. Wagner wrote the libretto himself. The story comes from the legend of the Flying Dutchman, which is about the captain of a ship. It is his fate that he has keep sailing the sea, without ever going on to land, until Judgement Day. The most important idea in the story as told by Wagner is redemption through love. It was a favourite idea of Wagner, who used it a lot in his later operas. (Wikipedia)
Ready to frame!