UK

Figure of a Bishop

Antoni Osinski

  • Figure of a Bishop 2
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  • Figure of a Bishop 5
Basic information
ID
С-I-1589
Author
Antoni Osinski
Name
Figure of a Bishop
Date of creation
1750–1760s
Country
Ukraine
Technique
carving polychrome
Material
wood gilt
Dimensions (height x width x depth, cm)
165 x 77 x 56
Additionally
Type
sculpture
Genre
religious
Provenance
Susidovychi village, Staryi Sambir district, Lviv region, St. Anne Cathedral
Information about author
Author
Antoni Osinski
Artist's lifetime
c. 1720 – after 1764
Country
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, now Ukraine
Biography
Antoni Osinski (c. 1720 – after 1764) was a native of Lviv, one of the leading masters of the second period of Lviv Baroque sculpture. It is known that he was an apprentice of Thomas Hutter and Johann Georg Pinsel. The sculptor’s artistic heritage is quite large; he is credited with many works, but only some of them are documented. Antoni Osinski worked on the interior design of the churches of the Order of the Bernardine Fathers in Lezajsk, Leshnevo (Lviv region), and Zbarazh. During his creative career, the sculptor’s working style changed under the influence of artists who came to Lviv from Germany and Austria. Antoni Osinski's sculptures are characterized by vibrant facial expression, as well as tendency to stylize poses and clothes.
Object description
The figure of the bishop is polychrome. It is represented in an S-shaped silhouette and a theatrical pose. The man is depicted with a mitre on his head, from under which one can see his hair falling in waves on his shoulders. The figure is performed in the Baroque-Rocaille style. The most important for the sculptor was not to reliably reproduce the anatomical similarity but to convey the form, mood, and emotions. The bishop seemed to freeze, leaning to the right. The author focused on a face with a small sharp chin, protruding cheekbones with sunken cheeks, a straight, well-defined nose, and small, thin lips. The author modelled the face, accurately reproducing the facial expressions of the bishop. Dynamic folds of clothing add expression to the image. Draperies form a kind of abstract, curved at different angles planes, which are not always bound to the figure and do not repeat its movements. Antoni Osinski's works are characterised by a tendency to stylise poses and clothes, slight asymmetry, and not always correct anatomical performance of the human body.
Legal regulation
Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery

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