Leon Tarasewicz (born 14 March 1957 in

Waliły Waliły is a village in north-eastern Poland, in the administrative district of Gmina Gródek, within Białystok County, Podlaskie Voivodeship, close to the border with Belarus. It lies approximately north-west of Gródek and east of the region ...

) is

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

painter of Belarusian origin, professor of fine arts, academic teacher at the

Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw ( pl, Akademia Sztuk Pięknych w Warszawie) is a public university of visual arts and applied arts located in the Polish capital. The Academy traces its history back to the Department of Arts founded at the Warsaw U ...

Biography

Tarasewicz was born into a working-class family. A graduate of the Art High School in

Supraśl Supraśl (; be, Су́прасль; ) is a town and former episcopal see in north-eastern Poland. Supraśl is in Podlaskie Voivodeship (province) since 1999, previously in Białystok Voivodeship (1975-1998) (1975–1998), and is in Białystok Co ...

, and then the Faculty of Painting of the

in the studio of Tadeusz Dominik (he received his diploma in 1984). From 1996, he ran a guest painting studio at the same university. He became a lecturer in painting space at the Faculty of Media Art and Scenography of the

. In 2011, the

President of Poland The president of Poland ( pl, Prezydent RP), officially the president of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Prezydent Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej), is the head of state of Poland. Their rights and obligations are determined in the Constitution of Polan ...

Bronisław Komorowski Bronisław Maria Komorowski (; born 4 June 1952) is a Polish politician and historian who served as President of Poland from 2010 to 2015. Komorowski served as Minister of Defence from 2000 to 2001. As Marshal of the Sejm, Komorowski exercised ...

, awarded him the title of professor of fine arts. He cooperates with

Foksal Gallery The Foksal Gallery or Galeria Foksal is a non-commercial gallery space in Warsaw, Poland established in 1966, that shows works by contemporary avant-garde artists. History The Foksal Gallery was founded in 1966 by a group of Polish art critics and ...

in Warsaw, Galeria Monopol, Galeria Arsenal in

Białystok Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the tenth-largest city in Poland, second in terms of population density, and thirteenth in area. Białystok is located in the Białystok Up ...

, Galeria Krynki in

Krynki Krynki ( be, Крынкі, translit=Krynki) is a town in northeastern Poland, located in Podlaskie Voivodeship along the border with Belarus. It lies approximately south-east of Sokółka and about east of the regional capital Białystok. His ...

, Galeria Ego in

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John ...

, and Galeria Biała in

Lublin Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the center of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin is the largest Polish city east of t ...

In 2008, he became the ambassador of the

European Year of Intercultural Dialogue Intercultural dialogue has long been a principle supported by the European Union and its Institutions. The year 2008 was designated "European Year of Intercultural Dialogue" (EYID) by the European Parliament and the Member States of the European U ...

. He emphasizes his Belarusian roots and promotes the

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...

of this minority in Poland. Leon Tarasewicz's painting reflects the beauty and colors of nature in a unique way and refers to the complex history of the Polish borderland. The most extensive bibliography of publications devoted to him (and filmography) is contained in the catalog of the exhibition at Ujazdowski Castle in 2003. In 2005, at the ceremony during the season-opening concert in the building of the Podlaska Opera and Orchestra in

, he was awarded the Gloria Artis Medal for Merit to Culture by the

Minister of Culture A culture minister or a heritage minister is a common cabinet position in governments. The culture minister is typically responsible for cultural policy, which often includes arts policy (direct and indirect support to artists and arts organizati ...

, Waldemar Dąbrowski. In 2011, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on al ...

. He also received the

Paszport Polityki Paszport Polityki (Polityka's Passport) is an annual Polish cultural award presented by the weekly magazine ''Polityka'' since 1993. It is presented in six major categories: literature, film, theatre, classical music, popular music, visual arts ...

award (2000), the Award of Jan Cybis (1998) and the Zofia and Jerzy Nowosielski Foundation Award. In 2007, Tarasewicz received the Grand Prize of the Cultural Foundation for 2006 for consistently challenging both the traditional understanding of painting and all conventions of understanding art. In 2014, he received the Honorary Pearl of the Polish Economy (in the culture category), awarded by the editorial office of Polish Market. In 2022, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the

University of Białystok The University of Bialystok is the largest university in the north-eastern region of Poland, educating in various fields of study, including humanities, social and natural sciences and mathematics. It has nine faculties, including a foreign one ...

References

External links

{{commonscat-inline Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw alumni Polish male artists Polish contemporary painters Polish educational theorists Academic staff of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw Polish people of Belarusian descent 1957 births Living people Recipients of the Silver Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis Artists from Białystok