Czesław, Alfred’s son

Czesław Wierusz-Kowalski (born 12 May 1882 in Munich, died 3 February 1984 in Warsaw), painter, teacher, and social, educational and cultural activist. He was the eldest son, the third child of Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski and Jadwiga née Szymanowska, daughter of Wacław, a writer, translator and editor of the *Kurier Warszawski*, and sister of Wacław, a sculptor and painter. He completed his primary and secondary education in Warsaw and Kalisz. He began his studies in painting at the Drawing Class in Warsaw – where his father had studied years earlier – and in 1904 he briefly studied architecture at the technical school in Friedberg. He continued his studies at the Technical University of Munich, which he abandoned in favour of painting. He was a pupil at Simon Hollosy’s private school (1904–1905). Subsequently, in 1906, he enrolled in Peter Halm’s drawing studio at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich. A year later, he left for Paris, where he studied at the Académie Julian and the Académie Vitti. He became acquainted with the Parisian émigré and artistic circles. He was a regular visitor to Olga Boznańska’s studio and Władysław Mickiewicz’s home. He travelled around Europe for a while, and in 1909 returned to Munich, where he painted in his father’s studio. In 1910, he left for Minsk. He travelled through the eastern regions of Russia for financial reasons. He married Halina, née Wańkowicz (1880–1926), with whom he had a daughter, Jadwiga, born in 1818, and settled permanently in Vilnius. He lived there until 1945, playing an important role in the artistic, political and social life of the city on the Vileika. He took part in the war of 1920. He was a co-organiser of the Vilnius Society of Visual Artists (1920–1939) and the Society of Independent Visual Artists of Fine Arts (1931–1939). He held numerous administrative, social and political posts, including head of the culture and arts section at the Department of Education in Vilnius; in 1919, he stood as a candidate for the Sejm. He served as an expert on the Horse Procurement Commission for the Eastern Territories. He organised art education in the Vilnius region. He sought to revitalise the exhibition scene in Vilnius and foster artistic exchange with other centres in Poland. Throughout this period, he continued to create intensively, painting primarily landscapes – to which he often gave a symbolic character – and portraits. In 1945, he repatriated to Poland with his second wife, Hanna (née Serafińska), and their three daughters. He spent a long time searching for a place to settle, trying, amongst other things, to return to his hometown of Mikorzyn near Konin. He settled for a while in Oliwa, and finally, in 1957, moved to Warsaw. He remained creatively and socially active right up until his final days. Thanks to his decision, the family collection relating to the legacy of Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski found its way to Suwałki, initially for a temporary exhibition and subsequently as a permanent collection.