Edited by MCK Sokół | Lesser Poland
The customer must be satisfied. Disagreements excluded.
Country: Poland
Region: Lesser Poland
Type of inspiration: Visual arts
Inspiracja
This was the motto of the portrait company of Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz (1885-1939), established in Zakopane in 1925. At the time, the artist felt that his work as a painter was underestimated and undervalued by critics, which is why he concentrated on his literary activities and on painting portraits on commission. He did not treat these works as true art, believing them to be simply products to be commissioned on the basis of an established, peculiar set of rules and regulations. Witkacy included several important paragraphs that the client had to accept before the work was done. The 1928 regulations stipulated, among other things, that portraits be created in several types marked A, B, C, D and E. Type A was characterised by the greatest idealisation of the figure and, according to Witkacy, suited mainly female portraits. Type B was chosen most often, as it was characterised by the most faithful representation of reality and an objective attitude to the model. Type C seemed to be the most intriguing. Witkacy always created it under the influence of alcohol and psychoactive substances, which made him not shy away from caricature and deformation. Unfortunately, works in type C could not be commissioned, as they were reserved only for family and relatives. Fortunately, it was possible to choose type D, which offered the same visual effects, but without any aids.
Witkacy set prices in advance for certain productions, but he sometimes worked for much lower amounts, which was due to his poor financial situation. Apart from making portraits in Zakopane, the artist also provided mobile services, in various cities in Poland. The painter stipulated in his terms and conditions that the commissioning party should not criticise the work in any way. As Witkacy wrote: "The client may not like the portrait, but the firm must not allow even the merest remark without its special regard". In the event of dissatisfaction with the work, it could be abandoned by paying 1/3 of the amount. In that case, the painting remained in the company's possession.
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