Wojciech Siudmak, Vestige du Passé, 2000

acrylic on canvas, 65x50 cm

Wojciech Siudmak was born on October 10, 1942 in Wieluń, Poland. He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw and the École des beaux-arts in Paris. Since 1966, he has lived and worked in France. He is one of the best-known Polish painters, and his works are distributed worldwide and illustrate books, appear on album covers and posters of artistic events and prestigious events. In addition to painting, drawing and illustration, he does sculpture, designs stage sets and even furniture. He is considered a leading representative of the so-called fantastic realism in art. His style is rooted in Surrealism and refers to the work of Salvador Dali and René Magritte. The artist captures three-dimensionality in a virtuoso manner, bringing to mind the Renaissance and Baroque masters. He captivates with his imagination and intellectual richness. His works are full of fantastic characters and unobvious connections. Wojciech Siudmak is the recipient of many awards and has been awarded, among others, the Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland and the Grand Gold Medal of the Academy of Art-Sciences-Lettres. His work has fascinated the likes of Frederico Fellini, and now George Lucas and Denis Villeneuve - director of the Oscar-winning "Dune," whose work Siudmak inspired to create a new film adaptation of the novel. Siudmak's works have been repeatedly shown in exhibitions in Poland and abroad. The first retrospective exhibition was held in 1989 at the Musée d'art moderne in Paris, and one more at the Eiffel Tower a decade later. Also on the occasion of the start of the new millennium, the artist's works were displayed on the temple of Ramses III in Luxor.