Wojciech Nowakowski
1959 - 2011
Wojciech Nowakowski created phantasmagoric imagery that would have been as much at home upon the canvases of old European masters’ depictions of Greek myths and Bible stories as in production art for films such as The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter. Born in the Polish city of Łęczyca, Nowakowski, he drew inspiration from the millennium of history, architecture, and museum collections surrounding him. One day while exploring ruins of old castles, he found a collection of old paintings and a box of oil paint, which as if from an heroic legend, vested him with his destiny. He was 8 years old, and he began to paint.
Over time, Nowakowski drew influence from artists ranging from John Martin and Gustave Dore to Rembrandt and Rubens, and the myths of Boruta the Devil, the netherworld sentinel of the treasures of Łęczyca—a figure who lives in many of his canvases.
After studying at the College of Fine and Decorative Arts in Lodz, Poland (where he mounted a solo exhibition, with another at the city’s Corner Art Gallery), he moved to Italy and then to Calgary (1989). He participated in numerous exhibitions in Calgary, including at the Polish Canadian Culture Centre and the Sheck Gallery, and at the Southern Alberta Art Gallery in Lethbridge. Private collections in Poland, Germany, Denmark, Austria, France, Italy, Spain, the United States, and Canada house Nowakowski’s work, as do the collections of the New Art Gallery in Lodz, former Prime Minister Joe Clark, Pope John Paul II, and the Vatican Museum.
Nowakowski died in 2011. He was 52 years old.
Over time, Nowakowski drew influence from artists ranging from John Martin and Gustave Dore to Rembrandt and Rubens, and the myths of Boruta the Devil, the netherworld sentinel of the treasures of Łęczyca—a figure who lives in many of his canvases.
After studying at the College of Fine and Decorative Arts in Lodz, Poland (where he mounted a solo exhibition, with another at the city’s Corner Art Gallery), he moved to Italy and then to Calgary (1989). He participated in numerous exhibitions in Calgary, including at the Polish Canadian Culture Centre and the Sheck Gallery, and at the Southern Alberta Art Gallery in Lethbridge. Private collections in Poland, Germany, Denmark, Austria, France, Italy, Spain, the United States, and Canada house Nowakowski’s work, as do the collections of the New Art Gallery in Lodz, former Prime Minister Joe Clark, Pope John Paul II, and the Vatican Museum.
Nowakowski died in 2011. He was 52 years old.