# Józef Gosławski (sculptor)

Józef Jan Gosławski (24 April 1908 – 23 January 1963) was a Polish sculptor and medallic artist. He was a designer of coins (e.g. 5 zł with fisherman), monuments (e.g. Frédéric Chopin in Żelazowa Wola) and medals (e.g. Year 1939). Laureate of many artistic competitions; decorated with the Silver Cross of Merit.

## Biography

Józef Gosławski was born in Polanówka, in the Lublin Governorate of Congress Poland, but was brought up Wąwolnica with his parents, two brothers (including younger brother Stanisław Gosławski, who also became a sculptor) and two sisters. He began his artistic education in the Building Crafts School founded by Jan Koszczyc-Witkiewicz in Kazimierz Dolny. After finishing at this school, he passed an exam to the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków, but he was too young to begin studies. He continued his education in the National Decorative Arts and Artistic Industry School in Kraków. He was influenced by Stanisław Szukalski, but he wasn't a member of the Horned Heart Tribe.
In 1932, he finally began studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków, where he was taught by professor Xawery Dunikowski. Then he moved to Warsaw, where he was taught by professor Tadeusz Breyer. He was awarded a scholarship to study in Rome, where he graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in 1937 (he was taught by Angelo Zanelli). During his stay in the Italy, which ended in 1939, he took part in exhibitions of the Kapitol – a society of Polish artists. He also served as the society's vice chairman.
He returned to Poland in July 1939 to become a conservator of the Royal Castle in Warsaw. He did not fill this position due to the beginning of the Second World War. He spent the occupation years in Wąwolnica. After the end of the war, he renovated, among others, a 17th-century house under St. Nicolaus in Kazimierz Dolny.
He held the Medal and Metal Sculpture Chair in the National Artistic School in Poznań from 1947, and was the chairman of Poznań district of the Association of Polish Artists and Designers (ZPAP) for two terms of office. Married to his student Wanda Mankin in 1948, he had two daughters: Bożena Stefania and Maria Anna. He moved with his family to Warsaw in 1956, where he became a chairman of Sculpture Department of ZPAP central board. He died suddenly in Warsaw in 1963 at the beginning of a new artistic phase.

## Art

Józef Gosławski was the creator of numerous monuments and portrait sculptures, sculpture caricatures, medals, coins, renovations and drawings. His early works, generally not conserved, show some influence of cubism (Self-portrait - 1932–1933, Portrait of Witold Chomicz - 1927–1928), Szukalski's ideas (sculpture caricature of Henryk Uziembło), as well as forms similar to ideas of the Polish Applied Art Society (design of the St. Franciscus altar). His stay in Italy and a direct contact with its art changed Gosławski's point of view – the portraits of Robert, Maria Maro, and the Sicilian show a strong influence from his antique studies. This influence, combined with the Italian Renaissance impact, are also seen in the early medals and plaques created in Rome. The before-war works were nearly completely lost during their way back to Poland in August 1939 (there is a relation, whose author says about possibility of staying a part of works in Castello del Catajo).
The years of Second World War were not lost in the terms of artistic activity. War conditions forced him to interest in small sculpture forms. The medals created in those years were mainly related to the martyrdom of the Polish nation.
After the war he continued his work in the field of medals. He was a precursor of the withdrawal from classic form and shape of medals. He became a lonely connection of the Konstanty Laszczka and Józef Aumiller generation with later medallists. His strong position in medallic arts is confirmed with numerous awards and purchases of his works to museums in Poland (e.g. Warsaw, Wrocław, Kraków, Lublin, Toruń) and in Europe (e.g. Prague, Athens, Budapest, Rome, Vatican City, Paris, The Hague, Moscow, Sankt Petersburg).
He returned to the monumental sculpture with the Adam Mickiewicz monument in Gorzów Wielkopolski, the Never war monument in Żabikowo (district of Luboń) near Poznań, a sculpture group called Music in Warsaw (MDM), and the Frédéric Chopin monument in Żelazowa Wola. He participated and won numerous contests for monument design, e.g. Heroes of Warsaw, Soldiers of I Army of People's Army of Poland and Bolesław Prus. He also created a monumental altar of the Transfiguration of Jesus in Masłów near Kielce.
Józef Gosławski's works are difficult to classify. Constant prospecting and an artistic anxiety lead him to create in the different forms and materials. But the main focus of his art was always a human being - as a hero and in everyday life. Gosławski was modest and friendly, even his caricatures, the art type very rare among sculptors, are featured with benignant sense of humour rather than malice.
He was honoured with 14 individual exhibitions, and his works were presented on over 60 domestic (in Poland) and over 20 abroad exhibitions.

### Participation in artistic competitions

| Year | Topic of competition | Comments |
| 1936 | Bust of Józef Piłsudski | First prize; sculpture created 1938–39, now at National Museum, Warsaw; a cast is at Turek Museum |
| 1946/47 | National emblem | Second prize |
| 1951 | Sculptures for Constitution Square, Warsaw | Three multi-figure sculptural groups including Music, on building at Koszykowa Street 34/50, Warsaw |
| 1951 | GKKF badge | First prize |
| 1951 | State Award medal | First prize |
| 1953 | Lublin monument to [World War II] partisans | Model stored at unknown site |
| 1953 | Lublin triumphal arch | Model stored at unknown site |
| 1953 | Medal commemorating 500th anniversary of return of Gdańsk to Poland | In the holdings of Lublin Province Museum; National Museum, Poznań; Museum of Metal Engraving Arts; Royal Castle, Warsaw; Ossolineum; and private collections |
| 1955 | Adam Mickiewicz monument, Poznań | Model, in private collections |
| 1957 | Monument to victims of Auschwitz concentration camp | Model stored at unknown site |
| 1958 | Coins | 10 złotych: Mieszko and Dobrawa; first prize. The coin was struck in 1966 as a 100-złotych silver commemorative coin for the millennium of Polish statehood 10 złotych: Nicolaus Copernicus. The coin was placed in circulation in 1959 5 zł - The Waryński Vessel - favouritism 5 zł - The Fisherman - favouritism. The coin was put into circulation in 1958 2 zł - The Cockerels - second prize 2 zł - The Elk - favouritism 2 zł - the reverse of coin with an image of eagle - second prize |
| 1958 | The monument of Heroes of Warsaw (I stage) | Unknown place of storing the first model; the second one in collections of Historical Museum of Warsaw |
| 1958 | The medal of XV-anniversary of The People's Army of Poland | First, second and third prize |
| 1959 | The monument of Heroes of Warsaw (II stage) | First prize (one of six); the model was made in cooperation with Wanda Gosławska and Stanisław Gosławski; nowadays the model in collections of Historical Museum of Warsaw |
| 1959/1960 | The monument of First Army | The model was made in cooperation with Wanda Gosławska and Stanisław Gosławski. Unknown place of storing the model |
| 1961 | Juliusz Słowacki monument in Warsaw | The first model in collections of Museum of Metal Engraving Arts in Wrocław, the second one in private collections |
| 1962 | The monument of murdered Jews in Lublin | The model of monument Flaming ghetto (Polish: Płonące getto) in private collections |
| 1962 | Bolesław Prus monument in Warsaw | Two honorable mentions; one of models was made in cooperation with Wanda Gosławska; the first model in private collections, the second one in collections of Museum of Metal Engraving Arts in Wrocław |

## List of solo exhibits

| Year | City | Institution | Number of works |
| 1933 | Kraków | Palace of Arts | ? |
| 1960 | Budapest | Ośrodek Kultury Polskiej | 30 |
| 1963 | Warsaw | Dom Wojska Polskiego | 49 |
| 1968 | Wrocław | Townhall | 80 |
| 1973 | Warsaw | Centralne Biuro Wystaw Artystycznych | 343 |
| 1974 | Warsaw | Galeria Wojskowa DWP | 34 |
| 1974 | Warka | Muzeum im. Kazimierza Pułaskiego | 56 |
| 1974 | Bydgoszcz | Regional Museum | 18 |
| 1987 | Lublin | Regional Museum | 76 |
| 1995 | Kazimierz Dolny | Muzeum Nadwiślańskie - Galeria Letnia | 80 |
| 1996 | Bolesławiec | Bolesławiecki Ośrodek Kultury | 70 |
| 1997 | Chełmno | Regional Museum | 50 |
| 2000 | Konin | Regional Museum | 84 |
| 2003 | Warsaw | Galeria Domu Artysty Plastyka | 105 |
| 2014 | Orońsko | Polish Sculpture Center | ? |
| 2014/2015 | Warsaw | Sculpture Museum in Rabbitery | ? |

## Selected group exhibits
### Domestic

| Year | City | Title of exhibition |
| 1946 | Lublin | The Festival of Arts (Polish: Festiwal Sztuk) |
| 1947 | Kraków | The II Nationwide Winter Salon (Polish: II Ogólnopolski Salon Zimowy) |
| 1949 | Warsaw | Artists in the struggle for peace (Polish: Plastycy w walce o pokój) |
| 1950 | Warsaw | The I Nationwide Exhibition of Plastic Arts (Polish: I Ogólnopolska Wystawa Plastyki) |
| 1951/1952 | Warsaw | The II Nationwide Exhibition of Plastic Arts (Polish: II Ogólnopolska Wystawa Plastyki) |
| 1953 | Warsaw | 10 years of People's Army of Poland (Polish: 10 lat Ludowego Wojska Polskiego) |
| 1953 | Lublin | The Exhibition of models of the triumphal arch for Lublin (Polish: Wystawa projektów Łuku Triumfalnego w Lublinie) |
| 1954 | Warsaw | The IV Nationwide exhibition of Plastic Arts (Polish: IV Ogólnopolska Wystawa Plastyki) |
| 1955 | Poznań | The Exhibition of Poznań District of Association of Polish Artists and Designers (Polish: Wystawa ZPAP Okręgu Poznańskiego) |
| 1955 | Poznań | The Autumn Exhibition of Poznań District of Association of Polish Artists and Designers (Polish: Jesienna wystawa ZPAP Okręgu Poznańskiego) |
| 1958/1959 | Warsaw | The Warsaw Sculpture 1945–1958 (Polish: Rzeźba warszawska 1945–1958) |
| 1959 | Warsaw | Warsaw in contemporary art (Polish: Warszawa w sztuce współczesnej) |
| 1959 | Warsaw | The II Nationwide Exhibition of Maritime Art (Polish: II Ogólnopolska Wystawa Plastyki Marynistycznej) |
| 1960 | Warsaw | The Polish Sculpture 1945–1960 (Polish: Rzeźba polska 1945–1960) |
| 1961/1962 | Warsaw | Polish Work of Art of 15-anniversary of People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Polskie dzieło plastyczne w XV-lecie PRL) |
| 1962 | Lublin | Martyrdom and struggle of Polish Nation 1939–45 (Polish: Martyrologia i walka Narodu Polskiego 1939–45) |
| 1962 | Poznań | The Autumn Salon (Polish: Salon Jesienny) |
| 1963 | Warsaw | The Nationwide Exhibition of 20-anniversary of People's Army of Poland in Plastic Arts (Polish: Ogólnopolska Wystawa XX-lecia Ludowego Wojska Polskiego w twórczości plastycznej) |
| 1963 | Warsaw | The I Nationwide Exhibition of Medallic Art (Polish: I Ogólnopolska Wystawa Medalierstwa) |
| 1963 | Warsaw | Warsaw in Art (Polish: Warszawa w Sztuce) |
| 1963 | Warsaw | The Exhibition in XVIII anniversary of liberation of Auschwitz (Polish: Wystawa w XVIII rocznicę wyzwolenia Oświęcimia) |
| 1963 | Warsaw | The Exhibition of Applied Art in XV-anniversary of People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Wystawa sztuki użytkowej w XV-lecie PRL) |
| 1963 | Warsaw | The Exhibition of sculptures and textiles of Warsaw District of Association of Polish Artists and Designers (Polish: Wystawa rzeźb i tkanin Okręgu Warszawskiego ZPAP) |
| 1964 | Warsaw | Warsaw in Art (Polish: Warszawa w sztuce) |
| 1964 | Warsaw | The Nationwide Exhibition "Textile, ceramic, glass" (Polish: Ogólnopolska Wystawa "Tkanina, ceramika, szkło") |
| 1965 | Warsaw | The Exhibition of old master print and sculpture in XX-anniversary of People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Wystawa grafiki i rzeźby w XX-lecie PRL) |
| 1965 | Toruń | Decorations, coins and medal of People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Odznaczenia, monety i medale PRL) |
| 1966 | Wrocław | Medallic art in People's Poland 1945–1965 (Polish: Sztuka medalierska w Polsce Ludowej 1945–1965) |
| 1969 | Warsaw | 25-anniversary of medallic art in Poland (Polish: 25 lat sztuki medalierskiej w Polsce) |
| 1969 | Wrocław | The Exhibition of ceramic and glass in XXV-anniversary of People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Wystawa ceramiki i szkła w XXV-lecie PRL) |
| 1969/1970 | Bydgoszcz | The medals of People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Medale PRL) |
| 1969/1970 | Warsaw | 25 years of Warsaw sculpture (Polish: 25 lat rzeźby warszawskiej) |
| 1970 | Poznań | The war and peace in plastic art (Polish: Wojna i pokój w twórczości plastycznej) |
| 1971 | Wrocław | Monuments and monumental sculpture in People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Rzeźba pomnikowa i monumentalna w PRL) |
| 1971 | Toruń | Nicolaus Copernicus's topic in medallic art and numismatics (Polish: Tematyka kopernikowska w medalierstwie i numizmatyce) |
| 1971 | Bydgoszcz | Polish cities in the medals (Polish: Miasta polskie w medalach) |
| 1972 | Wrocław | Polish medical medals and badges (Polish: Polskie medale i odznaki medyczne) |
| 1972 | Bydgoszcz | The women in the medallic art (Polish: Kobieta w twórczości medalierskiej) |
| 1972 | Bydgoszcz | Famous Poles on the medals (Polish: Sławni Polacy na medalach) |
| 1974 | Lublin | Review of Polish sculpture 1944–74 (Polish: Przegląd rzeźby polskiej 1944–1974) |
| 1974 | Radom | Contemporary portrait sculpture (Polish: Współczesna rzeźba portretowa) |
| 1974 | Bydgoszcz | The sports medals (Polish: Medale sportowe) |
| 1974 | Bydgoszcz | The medals of Polish museums (Polish: Medale muzeów polskich) |
| 1974 | Bydgoszcz | Polish cities in the medals (Polish: Miasta polskie w medalach) |
| 1977 | Bydgoszcz | Coins of People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Monety PRL) |
| 1977 | Bydgoszcz | The people of theatre in medallic art (Polish: Ludzie teatru w medalierstwie) |
| 1977 | Częstochowa | The exhibition of Polish postwar coins (Polish: Wystawa polskich monet powojennych) |
| 1979 | Wrocław | Contemporary Polish medallic art 1944–1979 (Polish: Współczesne medalierstwo polskie 1944–1979) |
| 1979/1980 | Bydgoszcz | The Polish writers on the medals (Polish: Pisarze polscy na medalach) |
| 1980 | Bydgoszcz | Traditions of the Polish army (Polish: Tradycje wojska polskiego) |
| 1980 | Bydgoszcz | The women in the medallic art (Polish: Kobieta w twórczości medalierskiej) |
| 1980 | Warsaw | The Polish science in the medals (Polish: Nauka polska w medalach) |
| 1985/1986 | Bydgoszcz | Money of People's Poland 1944–1983 (Polish: Pieniądz Polski Ludowej 1944–1983) |
| 1986 | Lublin | Lublin plastic art (Polish: Plastyka lubelska) |
| 1986 | Ostrołęka | Commemorative medals of Polish museums (Polish: Medale pamiątkowe Muzeów polskich) |
| 1987 | Bydgoszcz | The women on the medal (Polish: Kobieta na medalu) |
| 1988 | Tuchola | The jubilee medals of Polish cities (Polish: Medale jubileuszowe miast polskich) |
| 1990 | Bydgoszcz | Frédéric Chopin and the people of his epoch (Polish: Fryderyk Chopin i ludzie jego epoki) |
| 1996 | Bydgoszcz | Remarkable Poles on the medals (Polish: Wybitni Polacy na medalach) |
| 1997 | Warsaw | Tadeusz Breyer and his students (Polish: Tadeusz Breyer i jego uczniowie) |
| 1997 | Wrocław | The Polish sculpture (Polish: Rzeźba polska) |
| 1998/1999 | Warsaw | The time tunnel. Warsaw sculpture of the end of the century (Polish: Tunel czasu. Warszawska rzeźba końca wieku) |
| 2002 | Warsaw | Polish science in medallic art (Polish: Nauka polska w medalierstwie) |
| 2007/2008 | Bydgoszcz | Pharmacy and medicine in medallic art (Polish: Farmacja i medycyna w medalierstwie) |
| 2008 | Warsaw | The present absent (Polish: Obecni nieobecni) |
| 2009 | Toruń | Nicolaus Copernicus in medallic art (Polish: Mikołaj Kopernik w medalierstwie) |
| 2009 | Bydgoszcz | Polish museums in medallic art. From collections of the Leon Wyczółkowski District Museum in Bydgoszcz (Polish: Muzea polskie w medalierstwie ze zbiorów MOB) |
| 2010 | Wrocław | Polish: Impresje Chopinowskie |
| 2010/2011 | Warsaw | Polish: Wojsko Polskie w medalierstwie Józefa Gosławskiego i w kolekcji medali Centralnej Biblioteki Wojskowej |
| 2011 | Warsaw | Polish: Polska Szkoła Mistrzów |
| 2011 | Warsaw | Polish: Rzeźbiarze Saskiej Kępy wczoraj i dziś |
| 2012 | Warsaw | Polish: Sztuka wszędzie. Akademia Sztuk Pięknych w Warszawie 1904–1944 |

### External

| Year | State | City | Title of exhibition | Institution |
| 1932 | Austria | Vienna | The International Exhibition of Caricatures (Polish: Międzynarodowa Wystawa Karykatury) | Vienna Künstlerhaus |
| 1936 | Italy | Rome | The Exhibition of Association of Artists - "The Capitol" (Polish: Wystawa Koła Artystów Polskich "Kapitol") | ? |
| 1936 | Italy | Rome | The Exhibition of Association of Artists - "The Capitol" (Polish: Wystawa Koła Artystów Polskich "Kapitol") | ? |
| 1950 | Czechoslovakia | Prague | The World Exhibition of Medallic Art (Polish: Światowa Wystawa Medalierstwa) | ? |
| 1950 | Italy | Rome | The exhibition of sacred art (Polish: Wystawa sztuki sakralnej) | ? |
| 1959 | Italy | Catania | Circolo Artistico | ? |
| 1959 | Austria | Vienna | The International Exhibition of Contemporary Medals (Polish: Międzynarodowa Wystawa Medali Współczesnych) | ? |
| 1963/1964 | Soviet Union | Moscow-Minsk | The International at the 20. anniversary of The Great Patriotic War (Polish: Wystawa w 20. rocznicę Wielkiej Wojny Ojczyźnianej) | ? |
| 1964 | Italy | Arezzo | The International Competition of Medallic Art (Polish: Międzynarodowy Konkurs Medalierstwa) | ? |
| 1965 | East Germany | Berlin-Erfurt-Leipzig | The soldiers of the nation - the Polish army in the art (Polish: Żołnierze narodu - polska armia w sztuce) | ? |
| 1966 | Czechoslovakia | Kralupe | The international exhibition of medals (Polish: Międzynarodowa wystawa medali) | ? |
| 1966 | Bulgaria | Sofia | The exhibition of Polish medallic art (Polish: Wystawa medalierstwa polskiego) | ? |
| 1966/1967 | Hungary | Travelling exhibition | The Polish army in the service of people's defense (Polish: Wojsko polskie w służbie ludowej obronności) | ? |
| 1967 | Yugoslavia | Travelling exhibition | The Polish army in the service of people's defense (Polish: Wojsko polskie w służbie ludowej obronności) | ? |
| 1967 | Finland Sweden Poland | Travelling exhibition | ? | ? |
| 1967 | France | Paris | The XXVII Salon of The Sacred Art (Polish: XXVII Salon Sztuki Sakralnej) | ? |
| 1968 | Soviet Union | Moscow | The social-revolutionary topics in Polish fine arts (Polish: Tematyka społeczno-rewolucyjna w polskiej sztuce plastycznej) | ? |
| 1969 | Hungary | Budapest | International Military Exhibition of Fine Arts (Polish: Międzynarodowa Wojskowa Wystawa Plastyki) | ? |
| 1971 | France | Paris | The 50 years of the medallic art in Poland (Polish: 50 lat sztuki medalierskiej w Polsce) | ? |
| 1971 | Netherlands | The Hague | The exhibition of Polish medals (Polish: Wystawa medali polskich) | ? |
| 1972 | East Germany | Berlin | The war and peace in the arts of People's Republic of Poland (Polish: Wojna i pokój w sztukach plastycznych PRL) | ? |
| 1985 | Czechoslovakia | Prague | The Polish contemporary medallic art (Polish: Polskie medalierstwo współczesne) | ? |
| 2003 | Austria | Vienna | The New State. Polish Art between Experiment and Representation 1918–1939 (Polish: Nowe Państwo. Polska sztuka między eksperymentem a reprezentacją 1918–1939, German: Der neue Staat. Polnische Kunst zwischen Experiment und Repräsentation von 1918 bis 1939) | Leopold Museum |

## Inspirations

The memory of Józef Gosławski and his works, especially medals, is remembered not only on the occasion of exhibitions. In December 2008 Polish Mint emitted local currency of Lidzbark Warmiński. It was a ducat Four men (Polish: Czterech mężów) whose observe based on Gosławski's medal Lidzbark Warmiński - The City of Great Men (Polish: Lidzbark Warmiński - miasto mężów znakomitych). In 2009 The Polish Mint produced a medal series Famous Medallists dedicated to Józef Gosławski. In this set there was, among others, the medal based on project made during Second World war, entitled Year 1939 - it was the first public presentation of it. The second medal (by Hanna Jelonek) presented an image of the artist (obverse) and Chopin's monument by Gosławski (reverse). In 2009 there was also an emission of silver and gold replica of 5 zł with fisherman coin, which was designed to the competition in 1958. Moreover, there is the one street dedicated to Józef Gosławski - it is located in Wąwolnica - the village where the artists lived and created many works for years.

## Gallery

* Monument on the tombstone of Janina Gałowa, Rakowicki Cemetery in Cracow (1932)
* Monument of Marshal Józef Piłsudski in Turek (project from 1936)
* Monument of Adam Mickiewicz in Gorzów Wielkopolski (1956)
* Reverse of the former Polish coin (5 złotych, 1973) with the image of a fisherman (designed in 1958)
* Obverse of medal with Ludovic Lazarus Zamenhof (1959)
* Reverse of medal with Ludovic Lazarus Zamenhof (1959)
* Medal for Sacrifice and Courage (1960)