Painter. Jan Styka was a Polish painter noted for producing large historical, battle-piece, and Christian religious panoramas. He was also illustrator and poet. After attending school in Lviv, he enrolled at the Academy of Fine Art in Vienna. In Krakow, he studied with Jan Matejko specializing in historical paintings. Moving to Lwow, he opened a workshop and began to paint with Wojciech Kossak. Together they created his first panorama depicting the "Battle of Raclawice During the Koxciusko Uprising." The 1894 creation took nine months to complete and measures 15m x 144m and was painted to honor Polish history on the 100th Anniversary of the Insurgence. During World I and World War II, the painting was hidden to prevent damage and was subject to post-war political tussling. Finally in 1985, the painting was again exhibited in a custom facility. After moving to France, he continued to paint historical scenes, such as "Saint Peter Preaching the Gospel in the Catacombs" in 1902 and panoramas such as "The Martyrdom of Christians in Nero's Circus" in 1897. His "The Crucifixion" was unveiled in Warsaw in June of 1897. "The Crucifixion" was another huge canvas, measuring 59m long by 14m in height and was exhibited in the United States at the 1904 Saint Louis Exposition. The piece was seized by United States customs from failure to pay taxes, yet became lost. In 1944, the painting was discovered and subsequently restored by his son, Adam Styka and now on permanent display at the Hall of the Crucifixion at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Both of his sons were painters. Originally buried in Rome, with the permission of his family, Styka's remains were reburied in the Hall of the Immortals at Forest Lawn Cemetery in 1959. He is considered Poland's greatest panorama painter.
Painter. Jan Styka was a Polish painter noted for producing large historical, battle-piece, and Christian religious panoramas. He was also illustrator and poet. After attending school in Lviv, he enrolled at the Academy of Fine Art in Vienna. In Krakow, he studied with Jan Matejko specializing in historical paintings. Moving to Lwow, he opened a workshop and began to paint with Wojciech Kossak. Together they created his first panorama depicting the "Battle of Raclawice During the Koxciusko Uprising." The 1894 creation took nine months to complete and measures 15m x 144m and was painted to honor Polish history on the 100th Anniversary of the Insurgence. During World I and World War II, the painting was hidden to prevent damage and was subject to post-war political tussling. Finally in 1985, the painting was again exhibited in a custom facility. After moving to France, he continued to paint historical scenes, such as "Saint Peter Preaching the Gospel in the Catacombs" in 1902 and panoramas such as "The Martyrdom of Christians in Nero's Circus" in 1897. His "The Crucifixion" was unveiled in Warsaw in June of 1897. "The Crucifixion" was another huge canvas, measuring 59m long by 14m in height and was exhibited in the United States at the 1904 Saint Louis Exposition. The piece was seized by United States customs from failure to pay taxes, yet became lost. In 1944, the painting was discovered and subsequently restored by his son, Adam Styka and now on permanent display at the Hall of the Crucifixion at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Both of his sons were painters. Originally buried in Rome, with the permission of his family, Styka's remains were reburied in the Hall of the Immortals at Forest Lawn Cemetery in 1959. He is considered Poland's greatest panorama painter.
Bio by: Winter Birds PA
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