In the foyer of the Grand Theater of the Polish Theater Arnold Szyfman on November 6, there will be the opening of an exhibition of paintings by actor Stefan Smit. The exhibition will show, among other things, a series of paintings drawn on the sets “With Fire and Sword” and “Pan Tadeus” and portraits of other actors and family.
“I often wonder if I would be a painter if I wasn’t an actor. On the contrary, I don’t know if I would have become an actor if I wasn’t a painter” – said the artist, on FB from Teatr Polski.
“It’s a confession, Actor and painter It clearly characterizes a person, as an artist, who has an extraordinary space of art consisting of two spheres, completely different in + material + and in work. Acting and painting are contradictory even to the media. The art of representation is the word, movement, physical space and above all time. The painting is a two-dimensional object, completely fixed by the structure of the surface texture and color – if, of course, we mean a traditional painting” – wrote Stanisław Baj in the text about the exhibition.
He noted that “the only thing that connects them, which seems fragile and belongs to both, is the ambiguous pause, the silence of the scenic and drawn image, the inner ambiguous depth of sensitivity of the recipient of these plays and the creator, and the echo that forms and changes.” A creative phenomenon in which the world of acting and the world of painting debate each other, argue, question each other, deny, tame each other, give hope to the helpless, sometimes feel ashamed of each other, forgive stumbles, but this double creativity completes the world itself and creates a being that is not Ordinary, extraordinary friendship for both ”- we read in the text about the show.
Stefan Smit, an actor and painter, was born on August 11, 1943 in Biłgoraj in the Zamość region. “Among his important passions, drawing and acting, he chose to study at the Warsaw Theater Academy in the acting department (1961-1965). Actor of the Polish theater in Warsaw. Film and theater actor, excellent performer of many distinguished roles, “- he wrote.
It was noted that “from early childhood he constantly painted in the artistic atmosphere of his family home – grandmother Maria née Chimuska attended the Gerson School in her youth.” “In his youth, he received his first linguistic proof from a student of the Krakow painter Kazimierz Pochwalski, an outstanding portrait painter Boleslaw Zhidkovsky, who lived permanently in Vienna and was a friend of Stefan’s parents, coming to Beyogora in the fifties. At that time, the master of portraiture transferred a lot to art. A skilled young man. Valuable advice on drawing a portrait “- we read about the artist.
It has been noted that “for Stefan Smit, such a professional introduction, together with his inner passion and aptitude, has brought very exciting results.”
“Acquaintance with the workshop, mastery, accuracy in drawing portraits, characters, objects and motifs from nature, great creative need, prevented him from parting with the sketchbook in almost all circumstances throughout his life. He painted in the theater, on a set, at home, in the studio “- Kahn written.
Page asserted in his text that she was called a “severe observer”. “can I see The world through drawing and coloring individually, especially in portraits, to get the essence of the character and the rhythm of building the human face, to discover oneself at the same time, to reveal the language of drawing. His interpretation of the painting has a unique expression, it is sensual ”- we read about the artist.
A series of photos from the film set presented at the exhibition fire and swordAnd Ban TadeuszPhotos of other actors, friends, and family are a great example of this. Sparing colours, sometimes of varying degrees, painted freely, sometimes even carelessly, confidently, emphatically, as if the painter entered into an alliance with the rhythm of the presence of the person depicted, he showed the image of the soul from the depth, creating the sum of a complex figure, as if to say That’s what you are, that’s what I am too, thank you for drawing help“- Observed.” There is strength, tension, dynamics and sometimes reflection and gentleness in these paintings. Their strength lies in the way they are communicated, that is, in the original graphic interpretation of the human world. A small theater, but a painting, Stefan Smedt’s separate life “- he wrote.
“The peculiarity of portraits can be compared to the painterly portraits characteristic of the Sarmatians” – assessed Page in his text.
The exhibition will open on November 6 at 17 in the lobby of the Grand Theater. The exhibition will be open until January 29, 2022.
