In preparation for the 80th anniversary of the World Exhibition in New York, which showcased Polish cultural heritage in 12 thematic rooms, the Polonica Institute funded the conservation of some of the paintings by Polish artists in the collection of the Polish Museum of America in Chicago. These included works by Olga Boznańska, Leonard Pękalski and Andrzej Pronaszko. The paintings were restored by the American company Parma Conservations.

Work carried out in 2023

In 2023, the Polonica Institute commissioned the conservation of two stained-glass windows from the collection of the Polish Museum in America.

The first was the 1938 stained-glass 'Crucifixion' from the Cracow studio of Żeleński. This object was exhibited at the 1939 World Exhibition in New York. The second stained glass undergoing conservation is "King Jan III Sobieski with St John".

We invite you to watch a film about the conservation of the collection at the MPA in Chicago.

Works carried out in 2022.

1) Chapel, Piotr Majewski, wooden sculpture, 91 cm x 63.5 cm x 23 cm
2) Christ Crucified, author unknown, wooden sculpture, 38 cm x 33 cm
3) Candelabrum, author unknown, wooden sculpture, 33 cm x 20 cm x 12 cm
4) Christ of Sorrows I, author unknown, wooden sculpture, 19 cm x 9 cm x 9 cm
5) Christ of Sorrows II, author unknown, wooden sculpture, 20 cm x 8.5 cm x 8.5 cm
6) Christ of Sorrows III, author unknown, wooden sculpture, 35.5 cm x 13 cm x 12 cm
7) Christ on the Cross, author unknown, wooden sculpture, 38 cm x 20 cm
8) Roadside pole, Joseph and Magdalena Pinizny, wooden sculpture, 406 cm x 26 cm x 26 cm
9) totem, author unknown, wooden sculpture, 420 cm x 30 cm x 30 cm
10) urn, author unknown, wooden sculpture, 50 cm x 18 cm x 18 cm
11) St. Kinga, author unknown, carbon sculpture, 40 cm x 23 cm x 23 cm
12) Zakopane sculpture group (14), author unknown, wood carving
13) statue of a saint, author unknown, wood sculpture, 125 cm x 33 cm x 23 cm.

Work carried out in 2021.

In 2021, the conservation of paintings loaned by the Museum to the Polish Consulate in Chicago was completed. These were: Cracovian Horse Market and Cossacks on the Steppe by Ludwik Gędlek. This Polish artist painted landscapes, usually of the Krakow area, but also numerous battle and genre scenes, in which he often included silhouettes of horses and riders. His works often feature the Cossack population. He studied painting under Władysław Łuszczkiewicz at the School of Fine Arts in Kraków. Ludwik Gędłek's paintings can also be found in Stockholm, Chemnitz, Paris and the Lviv Picture Gallery.

The painting Patrol by Władysław Szerner also underwent conservation work. The artist's works dealt with themes of Swedish and Tatar wars and skirmishes with Cossacks. He painted both battle scenes with meticulous recreation of costumes and armament, as well as genre scenes from the vicinity of Krakow and the Hutsul Region. He studied painting at the School of Fine Arts in Warsaw under Rafał Hadziewicz, Aleksander Kamiński, Chrystian Breslauer and Marcin Zaleski, and at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich.

The work at the Polish Museum in Chicago also included the conservation of a damaged copy of the right wing of the Gniezno Doors (plaster, wood) and the cleaning of the Jagiellonian Globe (replica by H. Waldyn, Kraków, 1937).

As part of the project, conservation work will still be carried out this year on three modern, wooden, polychrome sculptures of saints.

The project should be completed by 30 October 2021.

Implemented by: Polish Museum in America in Chicago

Work carried out in 2021

In 2021, the conservation of paintings loaned by the Museum to the Polish Consulate in Chicago was completed. These were: Cracovian Horse Market and Cossacks on the Steppe by Ludwik Gędlek. This Polish artist painted landscapes, usually of the Krakow area, but also numerous battle and genre scenes, in which he often included silhouettes of horses and riders. His works often feature the Cossack population. He studied painting under Władysław Łuszczkiewicz at the School of Fine Arts in Kraków. Ludwik Gędłek's paintings can also be found in Stockholm, Chemnitz, Paris and the Lviv Picture Gallery.

The painting Patrol by Władysław Szerner also underwent conservation work. The artist's works dealt with themes of Swedish and Tatar wars and skirmishes with Cossacks. He painted both battle scenes with meticulous recreation of costumes and armament, as well as genre scenes from the vicinity of Krakow and the Hutsul Region. He studied painting at the School of Fine Arts in Warsaw under Rafał Hadziewicz, Aleksander Kamiński, Chrystian Breslauer and Marcin Zaleski, and at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich.

The work at the Polish Museum in Chicago also included the conservation of a damaged copy of the right wing of the Gniezno Doors (plaster, wood) and the cleaning of the Jagiellonian Globe (replica by H. Waldyn, Kraków, 1937).

As part of the project, conservation work will still be carried out this year on three modern, wooden, polychrome sculptures of saints.

The project should be completed by 30 October 2021.

Implemented by: Polish Museum in America in Chicago

Work carried out in 2020.

Conservation work was carried out on a further 22 paintings, including: Aleksander Jędrzejewski's 'Bydgoszcz', Tymon Niesiołowski's 'Summer', Władysław Krzyżanowski's 'Still Life', Alfons Karpiński's 'Portrait of Miss B', and Stanisław Czajkowski's 'On Saint Hubert'.

The paintings needed to be cleaned, losses in the paint layer had to be filled in, in several cases the old paint layer had to be removed and a new patch had to be installed in the place of a hole or tear in the canvas. The frames of the paintings also needed to be cleaned, repaired or replenished with missing sculptural elements.

Executor: Polish Museum in America

Work carried out in 2019

In 2019. The Polonica Institute funded the conservation of 25 works by Polish artists (these included Jan Styka's painting Joan of Arc and Bernard Frydrysiak's My Mother). All the paintings were specially displayed during the exhibition (11.10.2019-10.05.2020) organised to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the New York exhibition.

Executor: Polish Museum in America

Work carried out in 2018.

Conservation work was carried out on 8 paintings from the collection of the Polish Museum. The works included: "Defence of the Arsenal" by Leonard Pękalski and "Madame Paris" by Olga Boznańska.

Executor: Polish Museum in America

Photographs: Ewa Devereux and Julita Siegel

Works realised between 2018 and 2023 as part of the Polonica Institute's strategic programme "Protecting Polish cultural heritage abroad"