material: oil on board
dimensions: 68 × 105 cm
description: The Maid of Orleans holds a special place in Matejko’s oeuvre due to the subject matter unrelated to Polish history. The artist painted a major event in the history of France: the moment when, having defeated the English army, Joan of Arc is leading the dauphin with his retinue to Reims cathedral where he will be crowned king of France, Charles VII. It is the time of the greatest glory of the French heroine whose services for the country were inestimable. Matejko referred to her contribution to the defence of the country as “the most peculiar revival of France as a result of the mission of Joan of Arc.” France had been fighting a war of succession with England for more than a hundred years, and the state of anarchy in the army had been heightened by the dauphin’s lack of interest. Joan of Arc, a woman from a common family, managed to mobilize the army, win several remarkable victories, raise the morale of soldiers, force the enemy onto the defensive and then bring about the dauphin’s coronation. Being politically inconvenient, Joan of Arc was handed over to the English by deceit, who, having tried her for heresy, sentenced her to death by burning at the stake. The painting, on which Matejko worked for two and a half years, was purchased by Edward Raczyński for the Rogalin collection. The oil sketch from 1883, exhibited in the Sukiennice, is composed almost identically to the final version. The only difference is that the former has fewer figures and details. However, it is painted much more dynamically and freely and in lighter colours than the finished work. Barbara Ciciora
exposition: The Gallery of 19th Century Polish Art in Sukiennice,
The Cloth Hall, 1, Main Market Square
key: Around the academy >>>
dimensions: 68 × 105 cm
description: The Maid of Orleans holds a special place in Matejko’s oeuvre due to the subject matter unrelated to Polish history. The artist painted a major event in the history of France: the moment when, having defeated the English army, Joan of Arc is leading the dauphin with his retinue to Reims cathedral where he will be crowned king of France, Charles VII. It is the time of the greatest glory of the French heroine whose services for the country were inestimable. Matejko referred to her contribution to the defence of the country as “the most peculiar revival of France as a result of the mission of Joan of Arc.” France had been fighting a war of succession with England for more than a hundred years, and the state of anarchy in the army had been heightened by the dauphin’s lack of interest. Joan of Arc, a woman from a common family, managed to mobilize the army, win several remarkable victories, raise the morale of soldiers, force the enemy onto the defensive and then bring about the dauphin’s coronation. Being politically inconvenient, Joan of Arc was handed over to the English by deceit, who, having tried her for heresy, sentenced her to death by burning at the stake. The painting, on which Matejko worked for two and a half years, was purchased by Edward Raczyński for the Rogalin collection. The oil sketch from 1883, exhibited in the Sukiennice, is composed almost identically to the final version. The only difference is that the former has fewer figures and details. However, it is painted much more dynamically and freely and in lighter colours than the finished work. Barbara Ciciora
exposition: The Gallery of 19th Century Polish Art in Sukiennice,
The Cloth Hall, 1, Main Market Square
key: Around the academy >>>