Jan Walach (1884-1979), Portrait of a highlander from Istebna, 1922

oil, canvas, 69.5 x 43 cm,
signed l.d.: Jan Walach 22. 4. 1922 / From a photograph. On the back, oil sketch with a group of running soldiers against a landscape background.

Painter, sculptor, graphic artist. From 1904 to 1908 studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Cracow with J. Mehoffer, J. Fałat and F. Ruszczyc. He spent two years on a scholarship in Paris. Upon his return, he settled in his hometown of Istebna and connected his further life and work with this locality. Without leaving his native village, he documented the world of peasant labor, rural rituals, portrayed gajdos, musicians, children. He took up religious subjects, was interested in sacred architecture, and painted Beskid landscapes.