A fateful encounter with art
Life is full of surprises and twists and turns that often influence our path unexpectedly. So was it also in the life of Piotr Dmochowski, a lawyer and lecturer from Paris, whose visit to the municipal art gallery in Łódź in 1976 changed his life for forever. It was there that he first came across on the works of Polish artist Zdzisław Beksiński. Determined to find out more about the artist , he made the effort to look up Beksiński's phone number on his next visit to Poland. A chance encounter that marked the beginning of a formative friendship and collaboration.
Piotr Dmochowski and Zdzisław Beksiński: A combination of art and Passion
In February 1984, Dmochowski signed a contract with and Beksiński , which made Dmochowski the artist's official gallery owner. According to this agreement, Dmochowski was to receive at least 12 paintings per year and undertook to promote artist . He took on this task with great enthusiasm. He organized exhibitions in various countries how France , Belgium, Deutschland and even Japan, to present Beksiński's art to an international audience. So also held an exhibition here at the Theater an der Ruhr in Mülheim in the 1980s!
Dmochowski's admiration for for Beksiński's works even reached the level of obsession. He dreamed of opening a museum in honor of his favorite artist. This plan never came to fruition, but Dmochowski at least realized his wish to open an art gallery.
Paris in the 1980s: The Dmochowski Gallery at the epicenter of the art scene
The 1980s/1990s were a time of cultural upheaval and and artistic innovation, particularly in cities how Paris . The French capital was not not only the center of fashion, but also of art. Life pulsated in the streets of Montmartre and Saint -Germain-des-Prés, and the galleries were the setting for for the latest artistic trends.
Piotr Dmochowski was an important figure in the Paris art scene of the 1980s/1990s. Between 1989 and 1996 he ran the "Galerie Dmochowski - Musée galerie de Beksinski" on Rue Quincampoix. This gallery was a magnet for for art lovers and collectors and presented a diverse selection of works that brought the fascinating universe of Zdzisław Beksiński to life.
During this time, our customer was also a welcome guest at the Dmochowski Gallery. Working in the fashion industry himself, he lived in Paris in the 1980s/early 1990s. He regularly walked past the gallery and and was captivated by Beksiński's mystical, surreal and and sometimes frightening works. He decided to buy the large-format painting entitled "AZ" from 1984.
Down into the dream world: the painting "AZ" from 1984
works We have already had the honor of presenting a wide range of this exceptional Polish artist's work at auction and : from drawings to watercolors to paintings - we are now the leading house with the greatest expertise . Deutschland the leading house with the greatest expertise for the purchase and sale of Beksiński's works! In the upcoming Auction we are very pleased to offer the painting entitled "AZ" for sale. Painted in 1984, it dates from a later creative period than the artworks previously auctioned by us. Nevertheless, this work demonstrates an equally uncanny depth of the human world, in which artist leaves the interpretation of his work up to the viewer. So can only offer our own interpretation of the meaning and message of his painting.
on measuring 132.5 cm x 97.5 cm , Beksiński presents the viewer with a world that seems to hover between reality and and dream. The painting is dominated by orange-red tones. In the center is a monumental, box-shaped building that begins to decay from above. The background appears how to be an orange-colored sky that begins to glow with small white stars, creating a mystical and yet surreal atmosphere. In the lower area, various lumps of stone can be seen floating seemingly weightlessly. This depiction seems to defy all laws of gravity and reinforces the feeling of unreality and of the uncanny.
Beksiński plays skillfully with elements of mysticism and symbolism in this object . The scene raises questions on: Is the building a symbol for of decay? Is it even possible, that it heals from below and the stones float upwards for construction? Where are we and what does the shining sky mean? Is it it the fire of the underworld that blazes all around or an earthly fire that threatens the entire building through real dangers, how a war?
Masterfully, it Beksiński , for the viewer breaks down the surfaces of everyday life and and opens the door to the dream world by blurring the boundaries between reality and and fantasy. Once again, artist leaves us with questions about life, death, the underworld and the kingdom of heaven and and forces us to grapple with them.
The end of an era: the separation from Beksiński and Dmochowski
The friendship between Zdzisław Beksiński and Piotr Dmochowski quickly came to an abrupt end in 1994 and . Beksiński broke the agreement and for reasons known only to him and passed his paintings on to Polish galleries. This led to the end of the exclusivity agreement and and ultimately to the end of the Dmochowski Gallery in Paris.
Although the Dmochowski Gallery not no longer exists, it remains an important part of the art scene. It was a place of encounter, inspiration and passion for art lovers and collectors from all over the world. The gallery and the unique friendship between Beksiński and Dmochowski lives on in the memories of those who experienced it have, and in the painting "AZ", which always carries the story - of art, friendship, admiration and decay - for within it.
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