Jan Styka (1858 Lviv – 1925 Rome), Orpheus and Eurydice

pencil, paper, 30.5 × 24 cm (inside the mat)

Provenance:
The Paul Schlockoff Family Collection.
Private collection, Poland


The drawings are part of a legacy of approximately 100 drawings preserved in the collection of Paul Schlockoff—the closest friend of Adam Styka (son of Jan Styka). After emigrating to the United States in the late 1940s, Adam Styka entrusted Paul with managing his affairs in Paris, selling various paintings, and selling his apartment at 5 Place Pigalle. He also told him about his daily life and his family members. The result of this friendship is a collection of preserved drawings and paintings by both Jan Styka and his sons, as well as extensive correspondence between Paul Schlockoff and Adam, and between Wanda and Doris Styka (Tadé’s wife). From about sixty letters, we learn many details. Adam Styka wrote to Paul about his stay in Arizona in 1948, which transformed his artistic practice. As he wrote in his letters: “For two months, I was in Arizona with my wife, where I painted quite a bit; I am enchanted by the light there, the landscape, and especially the cowboys on horseback. So, being temporarily away from Africa, one could say that I’ve switched to American subjects.” Other letters mention the death of his mother (Jan Styka’s wife), the potential sale of a painting by Tadé Styka to the Louvre, and the construction of the Hall of the Crucifixion in California, which is to house a monumental painting by Jan Styka.