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Greeting Emperor Franz Joseph in Sukiennice in Krakow

Hipolit Lipinski

  • Greeting Emperor Franz Joseph in Sukiennice in Krakow 2
  • Greeting Emperor Franz Joseph in Sukiennice in Krakow 3
Basic information
ID
Ж-2192
Author
Hipolit Lipinski
Name
Greeting Emperor Franz Joseph in Sukiennice in Krakow
Date of creation
1881
Country
Austro-Hungarian Empire
Technique
oil painting
Material
canvas oil
Dimensions (height x width, cm)
150 x 293
Additionally
Type
painting
Genre
history painting
Provenance
Collection of Lviv City Gallery
Information about author
Author
Hipolit Lipinski
Artist's lifetime
1846–1884
Country
Austrian Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire
Biography
Hipolit Lipinski (August 14, 1846, Nowy Targ, Podhale – June 27, 1884, Krakow) was a Polish realist painter and educator. He was a co-founder of the National Museum in Krakow. The future artist studied at the art academies in Krakow and Munich. From 1875 to 1884, he taught drawing and painting at the Baraniecki Higher Women's Courses. He was the author of genre scenes from rural and urban life, landscapes, and portraits. Lipinski's works are preserved in the National Museums of Poland and Ukraine.
Object description
In 1880, Emperor Franz Joseph visited Krakow and Lviv for an inspection tour, where he reviewed the troops during manoeuvres. Mass events and celebrations always accompanied such visits. Special committees were established in Krakow and Lviv to prepare for the Emperor's reception. The members of the Krakow committee included artists Juliusz Kossak, Hipolit Lipinski, Jacek Malczewski, and Waclaw Konniuszko. The Emperor visited Krakow only twice. The painting depicts the meeting of Franz Joseph during his second arrival in the city from September 1 to 4, 1880. A building was chosen in the centre of the Main Market Square in Krakow, built as a trading hall, known as the Cloth Hall (Polish: Sukiennice). A special stage was erected for the Emperor and his entourage. The greeting was a theatrical performance featuring a Krakow wedding and harvest celebration. The large-scale multi-figure canvas was painted by Lipinski a year after the event. The spacious, brightly lit hall is filled with people in various festive attire. To the left, under a giant red canopy on a raised platform covered with carpets, stands the Emperor in a blue full dress uniform surrounded by his retinue. He is receiving gifts and greetings from various regions of his empire. To the right and in the centre, young people are dancing, while smiling children are depicted with wreaths made of grain and vegetables. The bright and dynamic composition conveys the scale and organisation of this festive event.
Inscriptions
In the bottom left is the artist's signature and date: "H. Lipiński w Krakowie 1881". On the reverse is the inscription: "Przyjęcie cesarza Franciszka Józefa w Sukiennicach w Krakowie".
Legal regulation
Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery

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