Self-portrait with palette

Teodor Axentowicz, a distinguished Polish painter, draftsman, and graphic artist, was born on May 13, 1859, in Brașov, Transylvania, into a family of Polish Armenians who had been granted nobility and the Gryf (Jaxa) coat of arms in the 17th century. His early years were marked by a move to Lviv at the age of three, where his sister Helena was born. Axentowicz's artistic journey began with his education at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich from 1878 to 1882, followed by studies in Paris under Carolus-Duran until 1895. During this period, he worked as an illustrator and created copies of masterpieces by artists like Botticelli and Titian. Between 1890 and 1899, Axentowicz traveled extensively to London and Rome, where he honed his skill in portraiture, capturing the elegance of women and the Polish aristocracy. His marriage to Iza Giełgud in 1893 led to the birth of eight children, one of whom, Filip Tomasz Stanisław, tragically died in World War I, inspiring the poignant painting 'Mother at the Son's Grave' (1915). Axentowicz's collaboration on the Racławice Panorama in 1894 with Wojciech Kossak and Jan Styka marked a significant contribution to Polish art. Settling in Kraków in 1895, he became a professor at the School of Fine Arts, a position he held until 1934, and founded a painting school for women in 1897. A co-founder of the 'Sztuka' Society of Polish Artists, Axentowicz played a pivotal role in organizing art exhibitions, leaving an indelible mark on Poland's cultural landscape until his death on August 26, 1938, in Kraków.