Łukasz Korolkiewicz “Dwellers of Sodom”

[…] [the idea is to], by reconstruction (and sometimes transformation) of some moments, places, situations, human faces, ordinary things, of everything I’ve seen and what already belongs to the future – get to the heart of reality and its mystery […].

Ł. Korolkiewicz

Łukasz Korolkiewicz was born in Warsaw in 1948. He’s a recognised painter and academic teacher. Graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in his home town. He obtained his art professor’s degree from the same academy in 1996. Korolkiewicz is largely associated with hyperrealism and neo-figurative art. Despite this, his early works were of rather abstract nature. A breakthrough in his artistic career took place during his travel to Western European countries in the years 1973-75. Probably that was the time when Korolkiewicz encountered works by David Hockney, an English painter and screenwriter creating realistic depictions. Since 1975 (until today) he has been using photographs in his works. The artist has been the laureate of numerous contests, including the Jan Cybis award.

The picture “Dwellers of Sodom” can be categorised as a specifically understood genre painting. His other works of similar expression include “Love” (“Miłość)”, “Weariness” (“Znużenie”) and “Dusk” (Zmierzch”). Korolkiewicz presents everyday life scenes, such as parties or discussions, in a typical, distanced way.
In the case “Dwellers of Sodom”, his representation is quite grotesque and ironic. We can indicate this by exaggerated gestures of both men, as well as a unique, lyrical character of the scene. It is not only a photographic realism, but a well distanced and playful commentary on the artist’s surrounding reality.

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The men’s faces can be found in other pictures by Korolkiewicz from late 70s and early 80s. The painter used to pose as a model for his photographs himself, which he later used in paintings. The heat map of the figure in the foreground proves that it wasn’t easy for the viewers to perceive the face of the man raising his hand. The slightly hazy and blurred scene required a moment of reflection from its recipient. The viewers probably needed some time to assess the condition of the figure. In the case of the man standing in the background, the fixation area looked different. His face seems more unambiguous to look at.

Each of us looks at the picture in a different way!

Site map

• How to use the guide
• Andrzej Wróblewski “Shooting I, Execution”
• Stanisław Borysowski “K. B. Graphic”
• Tadeusz Dominik “Composition”
• Zbigniew Makowski “Still Life”
• Anna A. Güntner “High School Graduates”
• Zdzisław Beksiński “Untitled”
• Tadeusz Kantor “Multipart – An Umbrella”
• Tadeusz Brzozowski “Favours”
• Jonasz Stern “The Moment of Light”
• Łukasz Korolkiewicz “Dwellers of Sodom”
• Interviews

PROJECT REALISED AS PART OF THE KUYAVIAN-POMERANIAN VOIVODSHIP MARSHALL SCHOLARSHIP
content & graphic design: Łukasz Kędziora | art collection photographs: Krzysztof Deczyński | translation and proofreading by Martyna Kowalska