Roman Kochanowski (1857-1945) - the last “Münchener” from Poland

He used photography as a support function. He photographed his picture models, collected photos of human characters and traditional costumes from professional photographic studios and had his own imaginary museum in which he collated dozens of reproductions of contemporary Munich paintings, including paintings of Polish provenance.[14] However, the majority of his photographic estate is made up of landscape photographs. That which was at the centre of his painting also dominated his photography. He labelled hundreds of cardboard boxes with cryptic figures that only he could decipher. Amongst these landscape photos are some extremely interesting pictures depicting the reality of Galician villages and fairs as well as some of the region’s inhabitants, who stare into the camera with curiosity but also with fear. The number of photographs reflects Kochanowski’s passion for this medium.[15] The artist’s records include notes about how he and his fiancée developed pictures, went on trips to the countryside and talked about the purchase of a camera.

Another important part of Kochanowski’s artistic work was in the creation of objects, including coloured ceramic vases, screens and fans. He also worked with the Kraków magazine “Świat” on the graphic design of the magazine by designing cover pages and creating illustrations. Calendars were a form of publications close to his heart as well. Also amongst the drawings and sketches are some drafts, each with 12 drawings assigned to the months of the year. The artist also liked to create elegant fans embellished with miniature fans, a very popular accessory at the time.[16]

These artistic activities allowed Kochanowski to improve his finances since he was selling fewer landscapes as time went by and his works were being seen at exhibitions much less frequently. Over time, the artist was forgotten, partly because the National Socialists imposed a painting ban on him. Since he was no longer allowed to paint or exhibit, until the end of his life he drew landscapes which usually depicted a group of trees, a dirt track and the contour of a stooped peasant woman.

The last years of his life were hard for the artist: he was widowed and was not allowed to sell or show his pictures in public for the reasons already mentioned. Yet, he still did not decide to return to his homeland. He died in Bavaria and thus became the last “Münchener” from Poland.

Eliza Ptaszyńska, August 2020