Boleslaw Cybis

Boleslaw Cybis (1895-1957) was a Polish painter, sculptor, and muralist.

From 1926 to 1930 he became fascinated by the peasantry of the country-side. His greatest inspirations were the 15th century medieval portrait masters. He painted a series of well-renowned peasant portraits; critics deemed his art memorable of the Renaissance classics. During the 1930's his work first appeared by invitation in fine art exhibits and museums in the United States. In 1932 he lived in Tripoli, Libya where some of his finest canvases were painted. Here, he painted experimentally with cement. Over the next few years he exhibits paintings at the Brooklyn Museum of Art, at Museums in Chicago and Dayton, Ohio as well as in the International Exhibition of Paintings at Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh and the Albright Gallery in Buffalo. Cybis was invited to exhibit his work at major cities on both sides of the Atlantic. His ceiling mural was awarded the Grand Prix at the International "Art and Technique" in Paris.

In 1939, Cybis and his artist wife came to the United States to paint a series of murals commissioned by their government in the "Hall of Honor" at the New York World's Fair. Here he completed tow frescoes. He then toured the States, sketching and painting Native Americans.