Wojciech Kossak, MISUNDERSTANDING, 1937

70.3 x 90.5 cm - oil on canvas

signed lower left: Wojciech Kossak | 1937

On the reverse, on the upper bar of the stretcher, a stamp from Róża Aleksandrowicz’s Kraków art supply store.

Wojciech Kossak (Paris 1856 – Kraków 1942) – a widely known painter, regarded above all as a master of battle scenes. The son and student of Juliusz Kossak, he studied at the Kraków School of Fine Arts, the Munich Academy, and in Paris. From 1895 to 1902, he lived primarily in Berlin, working for Emperor Wilhelm II. He traveled extensively, including to Spain and Egypt, where he made sketches for his planned panoramas. In later years, he traveled to the United States several times to fulfill portrait commissions. In 1913, he was appointed professor at the Warsaw School of Fine Arts. During World War I, he served in the military. He was a co-author of the panoramas: “Racławice” (1893–1894), “Berezyna” (1895–1896), “The Battle of the Pyramids” (1901), and sketches for the uncompleted “Somosierra” (1900). With passion and ease, he created large-scale, dynamic battle scenes, historical paintings, genre scenes, and numerous portraits. He particularly enjoyed painting horses. His paintings, which glorified the Polish military—both past and present—and the heroism of its soldiers, resonated with viewers’ patriotic sentiments and enjoyed immense popularity.