Danuta Urbanowicz (1932, Radom – 2018, Kraków), "Mit dem Rucksack nach dem Spittal," 1962

Exhibited
Danuta Urbanowicz. Paintings, Zderzak Gallery, Kraków, Feb. 26–Mar. 30, 1993

Bibliography
Danuta Urbanowicz. Paintings, exhibition catalog, Zderzak Gallery, Kraków 1993, p. 59 (illustrated as “Backpack”)

Biography
She graduated from the Kraków High School of Fine Arts and, in 1957, completed her studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków in the studios of Jacek Puget, Adam Marczyński, and Jonasz Stern. She earned her diploma in the painting studio under Prof. Czesław Rzepiński. From 1959 to 1962, she worked on the creation of the “Widzimisie” puppet theater in Nowa Huta. She has been a member of the Kraków Group since 1961. She also designs and executes polychrome decorations (churches in Lublin and Czerwona Góra). From 1964 to 2000, she led painting and drawing studios at the Faculty of Industrial Design within the Department of Visual Arts at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. The year 1968 is considered a turning point in Danuta Urbanowicz’s career. The political events of that time inspired the artist to create new series of paintings in which she moved away from the aesthetics of material painting. Over the course of several years, she created conceptual paintings—para-documents—that mimicked the language of bureaucracy. These were critical works protesting against the pervasive control of social life. She participated in projects such as the design of housing developments in Kraków and Sanok, as well as the design of color schemes and visual communication in industrial facilities. The artist also designs polychromes for sacred and secular buildings. Her polychromes can be found in Pysznica, Pawlikowice, Kraków, and Byszyce, among other places.