Bronisław Pięcik (; 1936March 25, 2010) was a Polish precision mechanic who was renowned for the elaborate medium and large-sized Nativity scenes called ''

Kraków szopka Kraków szopki or nativity scenes (crib, crèche) () are a Christmas tradition originating from Kraków, Poland, and dating back to the 19th century. An unusual and characteristic feature of the szopka is the use of historical buildings of Krak ...

'' that he built. Pięcik first took part in the Kraków Nativity Scene Contest in 1962. By the time of his death in 2010, he had competed a total of 41 times in the contests, placing first 22 times in multiple categories.

''Kraków szopka''

While Pięcik mainly built the ''Kraków szopka'' himself, he also worked on some of them with his wife Maria and his granddaughter Roksana Rutkowska. Each ''szopka'' would generally take him upwards of a thousand hours to build, while some took even more than that. For example, his ''szopka'' entry for 2004 took him more than 1,000 hours to build. He constructed his ''szopka'' according to the characteristics of the genre, which meant that they only contained historical, architectural elements found in Kraków as the backdrop. He was particularly fond of using buildings found along the Royal Route in Kraków in his ''szopka'', which he knew like the back of his hand. In 2003, Pięcik and his granddaughter Roksana Rutkowska took 1st place in the middle-sized division with their 172 cm tall ''szopka'' that reproduced in minute detail the Veit Stoss altarpiece from St. Mary's Basilica in Kraków. More than a dozen of his nativity scenes are housed in the ''szopka'' collection of the

Historical Museum of Kraków The Historical Museum of the City of Kraków () in Kraków, Lesser Poland, was granted the status of an independent institution in 1945. Originally, it was a branch of the Old Records Office of Kraków, in operation from 1899. The museum holdings ...

. Many others are in

private collection A private collection is a privately owned collection of works (usually artworks) or valuable items. In a museum or art gallery context, the term signifies that a certain work is not owned by that institution, but is on loan from an individual ...

s. His prize-winning ''szopka'' from 2004 was sold to a collector in Denmark. While working in

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

, Pięcik built a ''

'' that is housed at a cathedral in Baghdad, Iraq.

Placings

*1967 – 1st place together with Tadeusz Gillert, Maciej Moszew, and Witold Głuch

Medium-sized ''Kraków szopka''

*1977 – 1st place *1982 – 1st place *1989 – 1st place together with Andrzej Morański and Ryszard Kijak *1997 – 1st place *1998 – 1st place together with Roman Sochacki *2002 – 1st place *2003 – Pięcik and Roksana Rutkowska shared 1st place with Roman Sochacki and Marek Głuch *2009 – 1st place

Large-sized ''Kraków szopka''

*1979 – 1st place *1980 – 1st place *1983 – 1st place *1993 – 1st place together with Witold Głuch *1999 – 1st place *2000 – 1st place *2001 – 1st place *2002 – 1st place *2003 – shared 1st place with Tadeusz Gillert, Piotr Stremecki and Małgorzata Malicka *2004 – 1st place *2005 – 1st place *2006 – 1st place *2007 – shared 1st place with Leszek Zarzycki *2009 – shared 2nd place with Władysław Słaboński

References

* Archival material from the Department of Folklore and Tradition at the Historical Museum of Kraków. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Piecik, Bronislaw 1936 births 2010 deaths Burials at Rakowicki Cemetery Polish artisans Outsider artists