Bronislaw Chromy "Pegasus"
patinated bronze
height 56 cm
Biography
Bronislaw Chromy was born in the village of Leńcze near Lanckorona, to an indigent extended family. The death of his father forced him to work hard on the family farm and severely hampered the development of his innate artistic abilities. After World War II, through his older brother, Jan, he found employment in the metal foundry of F. Tiesler in Cracow. There, his works came to the attention of sculptor Karol Hukan, at whose encouragement Chromy graduated from the Krakow High School of Fine Arts with an externship, and later from the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow. He completed his studies in 1956.
Arrested several times by the UB, he was sent to Cracow's Montelupich prison several times. He became a teacher at the Academy of Fine Arts (initially in Katowice, then in Cracow.
He was a member of the National Council of Culture, the National Grunwald Committee, the Council for the Protection of Memory of Struggle and Martyrdom and the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences.
His works have taken part in exhibitions at home and abroad. His body of work includes dozens of large sculptural installations that appeared almost every year in cities throughout Poland. Among the most famous monuments are: The Wawel Dragon at the foot of Wawel Castle, the Fountain of the Players in Wolnica Square, the Sheep in the square in front of the Agricultural Academy, and the statue of the dog Dżok, which stands on Czerwiński Boulevard and has become the symbol of canine fidelity. The artist has also made hundreds of medals and statuettes. His works are in many Polish and foreign museums. The sculptures are also in private collections around the world.
Another passion of Bronislaw Chromy was his poetic work, crowned by published volumes, including "Sculpted with Words."
The artist was buried in the Salwator cemetery.
