Bronka Michałowska: A Life in Art

Abstract

Abstract The article is an introduction to an in-depth critical analysis of the artistic oeuvre of Bronka Michałowska—a Polish painter and author of a substantial collection of ceramic works. Michałowska’s artistic activity has been presented in the manuscript in the context of her immigrant experience which includes the artist’s short stay in London, and later in Canada (Toronto) where she lived for sixty years and where she died in the year 2015. The article examines several main stages in the whole collection of Michałowska’s ceramic works which include the creation of: ceramic paintings with figural and floral representations, symbolic and allegorical works, and ceramic murals that resemble stained glass-work. A separate study has been dedicated to Michałowska’s household ceramic objects such as multipiece fiance sets, vases, bowls, teacups, and mugs, as well as to the possible sources of her artistic (painterly) inspirations; for example, the work of such artists as Henri Matisse, Tom Thomson, and Arthur Lismer.