Bolesław Michał Rusiecki ( lt, Boleslovas Mykolas Ruseckas; (23 November 1824,

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

— 31 January 1913,

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

) was a Polish-Lithuanian painter and art collector.

Biography

Rusiecki was initially a student at the "Wileński Instytut Szlachecki" (institute for the nobility), then studied medicine at the

University of Saint Petersburg A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

. His father was the painter,

Kanuty Rusiecki Kanuty Rusiecki ( lt, Kanutas Ruseckas; 1800–1860) was a Polish-Lithuanian painter. Biography He was born into an impoverished noble Polish-Lithuanian family in Lithuania and his father was a magistrate. He is said to have displayed his art ...

. From 1843 to 1850, he audited classes at the

Imperial Academy of Fine Arts The Russian Academy of Arts, informally known as the Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts, was an art academy in Saint Petersburg, founded in 1757 by the founder of the Imperial Moscow University Ivan Shuvalov under the name ''Academy of the Thre ...

, taught by

Karl Bryullov Karl Pavlovich Bryullov (russian: Карл Па́влович Брюлло́в; 12 December 1799 – 11 June 1852), original name Charles Bruleau, also transliterated Briullov and Briuloff, and referred to by his friends as "Karl the Great", was a ...

and

Fyodor Bruni Fyodor (Fidelio) Antonovich Bruni (Russian: Фёдор Антонович Бруни; 10 June 1799, in Milan – 30 August 1875, in Saint Petersburg) was a Russian artist of Italian descent who worked in the Academic style. Biography His ...

. Upon completing them, he was awarded the title of "Free Artist". He was named an Academician in 1853 for his

allegorical As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory th ...

painting, "Połączenie Willi z Niemnem“ (The

Confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...

of the

Viliya The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...

into the

Neman The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...

) In 1857, he and his wife Stefania, née Karpowicz, went on an extended trip abroad; visiting several cities in Poland, as well as Dresden, Prague, vienna and

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into provi ...

. From 1858 to 1861, they lived in Rome. Upon returning, they settled at the family estate near Bialystok, but after Stefanija's death in 1866, at the age of only thirty-seven, he moved into Vilnius and taught drawing at the gymnasium. During this period, he created several religious paintings; notably an image of Saint Stanislaus, for

Vilnius Cathedral The Cathedral Basilica of St Stanislaus and St Ladislaus of Vilnius ( lt, Vilniaus Šv. Stanislovo ir Šv. Vladislovo arkikatedra bazilika; pl, Bazylika archikatedralna św. Stanisława Biskupa i św. Władysława, historical: ''Kościół Kated ...

, and one of

Saint Casimir Casimir Jagiellon ( la, Casimirus; lt, Kazimieras; pl, Kazimierz; 3 October 1458 – 4 March 1484) was a prince of the Kingdom of Poland and of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Second son of King Casimir IV Jagiellon, he was tutored by Johannes ...

, for St. Francis Xavier Cathedral, Grodno. Most of his works were portraits or landscapes. He was also a collector of art and related materials, including archaeological artefacts. In addition, he became a member of a committee devoted to creating a monument for the writer and poet,

Adam Mickiewicz Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (; 24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. A principal figure in Polish Ro ...

. Pursuant to that, he went to

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

to obtain a bust of Mickiewicz; sculpted by and cast in Paris. The monument itself was designed by the architect, , and it was installed in 1898, at the

Church of St. Johns, Vilnius The Church of St. Johns, St. John the Baptist and St. John the Apostle and Evangelist ( lt, Vilniaus Šv. Jono Krikštytojo ir Šv. Jono apaštalo ir evangelisto bažnyčia) is located at the Old Town of Vilnius, Lithuania and dominates the uni ...

. The project had been met with opposition, despite having been suggested by Mickiewicz's son, and it was dedicated without a ceremony in 1899. Toward the end of his life, he bequeathed his art collection, archives and library to the Society of the Friends of Science, and donated 10,000 Rubles for the construction of a building to house them. His works may be seen at the

Lithuanian National Museum of Art Lithuanian National Museum of Art is the largest national museum in Lithuania collecting, restoring, and conserving art as well as historical objects of cultural value while presenting artefacts of national importance in an astonishing number of ...

, the

National Museum, Kraków The National Museum in Kraków ( pl, Muzeum Narodowe w Krakowie), popularly abbreviated as MNK, is the largest museum in Poland, and the main branch of Poland's National Museum, which has several independent branches with permanent collections arou ...

, and the

National Museum, Warsaw The National Museum in Warsaw ( pl, Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie), popularly abbreviated as MNW, is a national museum in Warsaw, one of the largest museums in Poland and the largest in the capital. It comprises a rich collection of ancient art ( Eg ...

References

External links

"Paintings by the artist Boleslaw Mykolas Ruseckas from the collections of the Lithuanian Art Museum"
@ Parodas {{DEFAULTSORT:Rusiecki, Boleslaw 1824 births 1913 deaths Painters from the Russian Empire Lithuanian people of Polish descent Lithuanian portrait painters Religious artists People from Rome Artists from Vilnius

Biography

References

Further reading

External links