In 1886, the academy moved into its imposing headquarters, designed by Gottfried von Neurethner, right next to the Victory Gate. For decades, the academy was a symbol of liberal education, attracting numerous artists from outside Germany, including many painters from Poland.

The Polish colony at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts

Munich became a real magnet for Polish artists, especially following the tragic events surrounding the November and January Uprisings, when repression by the partitioning powers forced many of them to leave the country. Between 1828 and 1914, as many as 322 Polish artists chose to study at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts there, which was a remarkable phenomenon in the history of Polish art.

Reasons for choosing the academy

Why did they choose to study in Munich? Apart from its modern artistic infrastructure, the academy’s structure and the high standard of teaching, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts offered opportunities for all-round development. Students had the opportunity to familiarise themselves with a variety of movements in European art, ranging from historicism and psychologism to Symbolism and Art Nouveau, which found an echo in their work. Interestingly, the Munich education, which focused on fidelity to the realities of the era, sparked an interest among Polish artists in their native costumes and landscapes, strengthening their sense of national identity and encouraging them to create national art.

The successes of Polish artists

Thanks to the successes of such graduates of the Munich Academy as Adam Chmielowski (1845–1916), Józef Brandt (1841–1915), Józef Chełmoński (1849–1914), the brothers Aleksander (1850–1901) and Maksymilian Gierymski (1846–1874), Jan Matejko (1838–1893), Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski (1849–1915) and Stanisław Witkiewicz (1851–1915), Polish art gained a strong position on the European scene. Their commercial successes attracted successive generations of Polish artists to Munich, creating a unique phenomenon of migration within the art world.

Decline in popularity

However, with the outbreak of the First World War, Munich’s significance as an artistic centre began to wane, and its place was taken by the Parisian art schools, which became the new Mecca for Polish and European artists.

We also invite you to read the article ‘Polish painting in Munich and its traces in museum collections’