Stanisław Fijałkowski's Spiritual Highways at DEP Art Milan
A new exhibition at DEP Art in Milan, curated by Alberto Zanchetta and organized by the Stanisław Fijałkowski Foundation, explores the Polish artist's spiritual abstraction. Fijałkowski (1922–2020) studied under Strzemiński in Łódź, moving from Surrealist abstraction to a purified, informal color field. After WWII, the Polish government allocated top-floor attics to artists; Fijałkowski's high studio inspired his series of 'highways to heaven'—asphalt strips ascending skyward, symbolizing spiritual ascent. The show includes three works dedicated to his wife (III–V and VII obraz dla Walerii, 1992), which resemble flat monochromes from afar but become window-like openings onto dense, airy space, reminiscent of Ettore Spalletti. Fijałkowski described his art as a connection between heaven and earth, a theme he articulated during his 2017 Brooklyn exhibition.
Key facts
- Stanisław Fijałkowski was born in Zdołbunów in 1922 and died in Łódź in 2020.
- He studied under Strzemiński, a student of Malevich.
- After WWII, the Polish government gave artists top-floor apartments; Fijałkowski lived in a renovated attic.
- His series features asphalt strips that appear to be highways reaching toward the sky.
- Three works from 1992, titled 'III–V and VII obraz dla Walerii', are dedicated to his wife.
- The exhibition is held at DEP Art gallery in Milan, curated by Alberto Zanchetta.
- The show is organized by the Stanisław Fijałkowski Foundation.
- Fijałkowski described his work as a link between heaven and earth during a 2017 Brooklyn show.
Entities
Artists
- Stanisław Fijałkowski
- Władysław Strzemiński
- Kazimir Malevich
- Ettore Spalletti
- Alberto Zanchetta
Institutions
- DEP Art
- Stanisław Fijałkowski Foundation
- Brooklyn Museum
Locations
- Zdołbunów
- Łódź
- Poland
- Milan
- Italy
- Brooklyn
- United States