Pius Weloński
Portrait of Dolores Radziwiłł, undated
In the National Museum in Krakow since 1945
imnk
material: marble

dimensions: 68 × 44,5 × 32 cm

description: The academic bust by Pius Weloński, carved in Carrara marble, depicts Dolores Radziwiłł (1886–1966), or actually – Dolores Konstancja Joanna Radziwiłł – daughter of Dominik Radziwiłł, the owner of an estate in Balice near Krakow, and the Spaniard Dolores de Agramonte. Her first husband, the adjutant to Józef Piłsudski, Stanisław Wilhelm Radziwiłł, whom she married at the age of 20, was killed after 14 years of their marriage, in 1920, during the April offensive in Ukraine. A year later, Dolores married her cousin Leon Konstanty Radziwiłł “Loche,” who took an active part in the artistic life of Paris. Dolores, who was sensitive to art, had desired to go there for a long time. The second marriage was extremely successful, though it ended up tragically. Stanisław, who did not deny himself drugs, died in 1932 in mysterious circumstances. Nonetheless, this relationship brought a positive change in the life of the Polish aristocrat. Her bosom friend, Misia Godebska-Sert, an interesting figure of the artistic bohemia of inter-war Paris, wrote about it in her memoirs. This patroness of many artists, a close friend of Picasso, Bonnard and others, regarded Dolores as the “most amusing woman.” According to her, every crazy thing seemed something natural and normal when done with Dolores. With time, Dolores Radziwiłł became an important figure in Misia’s “retinue.” Together they carried out even the most eccentric ideas like, for example, helping young artists from Krakow organize a ball in Salle d’Horticulture at rue de Grenelle in Paris. Allegedly, the ball, which went down in history as the Kapists’ “Super Jazz Ball,” was held under the honorary patronage of Dolores in conjunction with Picasso. Dominik Kuryłek

exposition: The Gallery of 19th Century Polish Art in Sukiennice,
The Cloth Hall, 1, Main Market Square


key: Around the academy >>>

© 2010 National Museum in Krakow
design & concept: creator.pl
>