8th June, 5:30pm for 6pm start, Ognisko Polskie – The Polish Hearth Club,

‘Every picture tells a story’ is a familiar phrase, but understanding the story, and the artist, is always more rewarding with expert explanations. The artist in question is one of Poland’s greatest painters, and the subject of a major exhibition, Stanisław Wyspiański: Portraits at the National Portrait Gallery until 13 July, 2025. This is actually the first exhibition of Wyspiański’s portraits to be held in London.

The expert panel includes Dr Alison Smith and Professor Andrzej Szczerski, who are Co-Curators of the Stanisław Wyspiański: Portraits exhibition, with Dr Julia Griffin moderating.

Tickets: 8 June | Stanisław Wyspiański: Portraits

Together they will explain the rationale behind the exhibition, and explore Wyspiański’s artistic aims and vision. Wyspiański believed monumental decorative schemes and ornamentation were his true forte, but also intended his portraits to break the barrier separating the fine and decorative arts. Meanwhile, every aspect of Wyspiański’s art – including portraiture – expressed a sense of Polish identity. This sense was at the core of the Young Poland movement, in which Wyspiański played a leading role. Emerging in the late nineteenth century this movement spanned art, music and literature, and was characterised by Romanticism, Modernism, folk art and Nationalism. Consequently, this encapsulated the hope that Poland would regain independence (having been partitioned by Russia, Prussia and the Austro-Hungarian Empire).

Dr Alison Smith is Director of Collections and Research at the Wallace Collection, London, and the author of Symbolist Art in Poland (Tate Publishing, 2009).

Professor Andrzej Maria Szczerski is a Polish art historian, art critic and lecturer at the Institute of Art History of the Jagiellonian University, and the Director of the National Museum in Kraków. In 2020, together with Dr Julia Griffin, he co-curated the highly successful “Young Poland” exhibition at the William Morris Gallery, and they also co-wrote the accompanying best-selling book: “Young Poland: The Polish Arts and Crafts Movement, 1890–1918” (Lund Humphries, 2020; William Morris Gallery 2021-2022).

Dr Julia Griffin is an art historian and curator specialising in British and Polish art. She has held curatorial appointments at the Guildhall Art Gallery and Watts Gallery, and completed her PhD in Rossetti, Morris and Kelmscott.

Tickets: 8 June | Stanisław Wyspiański: Portraits

This discussion is organised in partnership with the Polish Cultural Institute as part of this year’s UK/Poland Season 2025. Find out more about the Season here:

UK/Poland Season 2025 | British Council Poland

The Stanisław Wyspiański: Portraits exhibition is co-organised by the National Portrait Gallery and the National Museum in Kraków, admission is free.