Józef Gosławski (sculptor) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Józef Gosławski
Born	Józef Jan Gosławski (1908-04-24)24 April 1908 Polanówka, Congress Poland, Russian Empire
Died	23 January 1963(1963-01-23) (aged 54) Warsaw, Poland
Nationality	Polish
Notable work	Frédéric Chopin monument in Żelazowa Wola, "Never war" monument, The Music in Warsaw, Adam Mickiewicz monument in Gorzów Wielkopolski, Józef Piłsudski monument in Turek, Medal of the 10th-Anniversary of People's Poland, Medal for Sacrifice and Courage
Awards

Józef Jan Gosławski (born April 24, 1908 – died January 23, 1963) was a famous Polish artist. He was a sculptor, meaning he created art by shaping materials like clay or stone. He was also a "medallic artist," which means he designed medals and coins.

Gosławski created many important works. These include large statues like the Chopin monument in Żelazowa Wola. He also designed coins, such as the 5 zł coin with a fisherman. His medals, like the one called Year 1939, are also well-known. He won many art competitions and received the Silver Cross of Merit award.

Józef Gosławski's Life Story

Józef Gosławski was born in a village called Polanówka in Poland. He grew up in Wąwolnica with his parents, two brothers, and two sisters. His younger brother, Stanisław Gosławski, also became a sculptor.

Józef started his art education at a special school in Kazimierz Dolny. He later wanted to study at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. He was too young at first, so he went to another art school in Kraków.

The Chopin monument in Żelazowa Wola (1955/1969)

In 1932, he finally began studying at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. He learned from famous professors like Xawery Dunikowski and Tadeusz Breyer. He then received a scholarship to study in Rome, Italy. He graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Rome in 1937. While in Italy, he joined a group of Polish artists called The Capitol. He was even the group's vice chairman.

Józef returned to Poland in July 1939. He was supposed to work on restoring the Royal Castle in Warsaw. However, World War II started soon after, so he couldn't take the job. He spent the war years in Wąwolnica. After the war, he helped fix old buildings, like a 17th-century house in Kazimierz Dolny.

From 1947, he taught at the National Artistic School in Poznań. He also led the Poznań branch of the Association of Polish Artists and Designers (ZPAP) for several years. In 1948, he married Wanda Mankin, who was one of his students. They had two daughters, Bożena and Maria. In 1956, his family moved to Warsaw. Józef became a leader in the ZPAP's sculpture department. He passed away suddenly in Warsaw in 1963.

Józef Gosławski's Artworks

Józef Gosławski created many different kinds of art. He made monuments (large statues), portraits (sculptures of people's faces), funny caricatures, medals, and coins. He also helped restore old buildings and made drawings.

The Never war monument in Żabikowo (Luboń, 1956)

His early works showed some influence from cubism, an art style that uses geometric shapes. He was also inspired by other Polish artists. When he studied in Italy, he was influenced by ancient Roman and Italian Renaissance art. Many of his artworks from before the war were lost when they were being shipped back to Poland in 1939.

During World War II, he focused on smaller art pieces, especially medals. These medals often showed the suffering of the Polish people during the war.

After the war, he became very important in the world of medal art. He was known for trying new ideas and moving away from traditional medal designs. His medals are now in many museums in Poland and other European countries like Prague, Rome, and Paris.

A funny sculpture of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1932)

Gosławski also returned to making large sculptures. Some of his famous monuments include the Adam Mickiewicz monument in Gorzów Wielkopolski. He also created the Never war monument in Żabikowo and a sculpture group called Music in Warsaw. His most famous work is the Frédéric Chopin monument in Żelazowa Wola. He won many contests for his monument designs.

Józef Gosławski's art is hard to put into one category because he was always trying new things. But his main focus was always people, whether they were heroes or just everyday individuals. He was known for being kind and friendly. Even his caricatures, which are rare for sculptors, were gentle and funny, not mean.

He had 14 solo art shows, and his works were shown in over 60 exhibitions in Poland and more than 20 abroad.

Winning Art Competitions

Józef Gosławski often entered art competitions and won many awards. Here are some of his notable wins:

Solo Art Shows

Józef Gosławski had many exhibitions where only his art was shown. Here are some of them:

The Music - a sculpture group in Warsaw (1952)

Group Art Shows

Józef Gosławski's art was also part of many group exhibitions, both in Poland and other countries.

In Poland

Outside Poland

Year	Country	City	Exhibition Name
1932	Austria	Vienna	The International Exhibition of Caricatures
1936	Italy	Rome	The Exhibition of Association of Artists - "The Capitol"
1950	Czechoslovakia	Prague	The World Exhibition of Medallic Art
1959	Austria	Vienna	The International Exhibition of Contemporary Medals
1965	East Germany	Berlin-Erfurt-Leipzig	The soldiers of the nation - the Polish army in the art
1966	Bulgaria	Sofia	The exhibition of Polish medallic art
1967	France	Paris	The XXVII Salon of The Sacred Art
1971	France	Paris	The 50 years of the medallic art in Poland
1971	Netherlands	The Hague	The exhibition of Polish medals
2003	Austria	Vienna	The New State. Polish Art between Experiment and Representation 1918–1939

Józef Gosławski's Legacy

Józef Gosławski's work is still remembered today. For example, in 2008, the Polish Mint (the place where coins are made) created a special coin for Lidzbark Warmiński. This coin was based on one of Gosławski's medals.

In 2009, the Polish Mint also made a series of medals called Famous Medallists. One of these medals was dedicated to Józef Gosławski. It included a design he made during World War II, called Year 1939, which had never been shown to the public before. Another medal in the series showed Gosławski's face on one side and his Chopin monument on the other.

Also in 2009, silver and gold copies were made of his famous 5 zł coin with the fisherman design. There is even a street named after Józef Gosławski in Wąwolnica, the village where he lived and worked for many years.

Images for kids

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  Monument on the tombstone of Janina Gałowa, Rakowicki Cemetery in Cracow (1932)

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  Monument of Marshal Józef Piłsudski in Turek (project from 1936)

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  Monument of Adam Mickiewicz in Gorzów Wielkopolski (1956)

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  Reverse of the former Polish coin (5 złotych, 1973) with the image of a fisherman (designed in 1958)

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  Front side of a medal with Ludovic Lazarus Zamenhof (1959)

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  Back side of a medal with Ludovic Lazarus Zamenhof (1959)

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  Medal for Sacrifice and Courage (1960)

See also

In Spanish: Józef Gosławski para niños