Born: 1912 Zaleszczyki, Poland
Died: 1868 Kraków, Poland
Year of Migration to the UK: 1940
Other name/s: Mieczyslaw Tadeusz Janikowski, Tadeusz Janikowski
Biography
Artist Mieczyslaw Janikowski was born in Zaleszczyki, Congress Poland (now Poland), in 1912. The outbreak of the First World War forced his family to relocate temporarily to Biała. Janikowski's formative years were spent in Olkusz, where he attended local schools, excelling in sports and music, while developing early artistic talents through school theatre productions. Initially enrolling to study law at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Janikowski's artistic inclinations soon prevailed. In 1934, he entered the Kraków Academy of Fine Arts, studying under notable Polish artists including Władysław Jarocki and Stanisław Filipkiewicz. During this time, he also performed minor roles at Kraków's Juliusz Słowacki Theatre, sparking an early interest in scenography. Upon graduation in 1939, Janikowski faced imminent war. Mobilised into active service as a cavalry officer with Poland's 22nd Carpathian Uhlan Regiment, he experienced frontline battles against the advancing German forces. Following intense combat near Tomaszów Lubelski, his regiment was surrounded and disarmed by Soviet troops. Janikowski evaded capture, escaping to Hungary where he endured brief internment. Despite harsh conditions, he continued to paint, encouraged by former professor Filipkiewicz who advised him to persevere regardless of wartime turmoil.
In 1940, he escaped from Hungary via Split, a coastal city in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia (now Croatia), and arrived in Marseille aboard the Maltese ship Patris. After further brief internment, he reached Liverpool on 23 June 1940. In Britain, he joined General Stanisław Maczek’s 1st Polish Armoured Division, transitioning from cavalry to mechanised warfare. He later took part in the liberation of France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. In 1944 he was severely wounded near Alphen, suffering a shrapnel injury that lodged dangerously close to his spine. Evacuated to Scotland for medical treatment, he underwent extensive hospitalisation.
During his convalescence, Janikowski enrolled at Edinburgh College of Art. This Scottish period was crucial, marking a decisive shift toward abstraction, influenced by exposure to British modernism and key European artists. Janikowski received notable scholarships, facilitating his travel and artistic exploration. At this time, his work appeared at exhibitions organised by the Society of Scottish Artists (1945–46, 1948), Royal Scottish Academy (1946), and notably, the Polish Art Exhibition at the Edinburgh International Festival in 1947. A review in the Arbroath Herald of the 1948 Society of Scottish Artists’ exhibition singled out Janikowski, noting that he, along with L. T. Muszynski and Eric Schilsky, ‘succeeded in being more inspirational’ than many of the other contributors, whose works were dismissed as ‘derivative’ or marred by ‘a certain apathy’ (Arbroath Herald 1948, p. 11). His friend, painter Marian Kratochwil, recalled Janikowski’s unique method: meticulously salvaging leftover paint scraps, anticipating harmony in what others dismissed as waste (Janikowski exhibition catalogue 1986, p. 16). In September 1947, Janikowski moved to Paris, briefly interrupted by a pivotal period in London from 1951 to 1952. The capital provided another influential chapter. Initially staying with friends, he soon acquired a studio on Gloucester Road, remembered vividly by Zygmunt Godyń as a curious collection of eclectic objects and abstract constructions. His London stay allowed him to absorb the city’s vibrant postwar modernism, intensifying his exploration into geometric abstraction, which became his defining style.
Returning to Paris in 1952, Janikowski settled permanently at ‘La Ruche’, an iconic artists' colony, inheriting the studio of his close friend, painter Stanisław Grabowski. In Paris, his art reached full maturity, synthesising experiences from Poland, Britain, and France into a distinctive abstract visual language. He exhibited regularly with Réalités Nouvelles, a Paris-based avant-garde collective advocating geometric abstraction, earning international recognition with shows in France, Belgium, and Germany. In 1956, he also held a solo exhibition at the New Vision Centre Gallery in London, one of the leading spaces for international abstract art in the postwar period. Janikowski’s work evolved into a compelling dialogue between figurative landscape studies—especially those inspired by annual trips to Provence—and rigorous geometric abstraction. His abstractions balanced disciplined forms and carefully modulated colours, exploring tensions between simplicity and complexity, movement and stasis, spirituality and materiality. He also produced religious artworks, reflecting a profound personal faith.
Although acclaimed internationally, his first major Polish exhibition occurred only in 1962 at Kraków’s Galeria Krzysztofory, marking his emotional return after 23 years in exile. His visits home thereafter became annual, reinforcing connections with Polish artistic circles, including notable figures like Henryk Stażewski and Jan Ekiert. Despite increasing recognition, Janikowski remained uncompromisingly devoted to his artistic vision, unaffected by commercial pressures or transient trends. His dedication inspired fellow artists and critics alike, notably Józef Czapski, who admired Janikowski’s integrity and artistic purity. During what became his last visit to Poland, Janikowski fell ill, exacerbated by lingering wartime injuries. Mieczyslaw Janikowski died in Kraków, Poland on 14 December 1968. Posthumously, major retrospectives included shows at Poland’s Muzeum Sztuki in Łódź, the National Museum in Warsaw, and Drian Galleries, London (established by Polish émigré, Halima Nalecz). His work is not currently represented in UK public collections.
Related books
- Mieczysław Janikowski: Malarstwo/Painting: 1948-1953, exh. cat. (Kraków: Galeria Dyląg, 2014)
- Mirosław Adam Supruniuk, ‘Permanence and Liquidity.’ Polish Art in Great Britain in the 20th Century – Introduction to a Description’, Archives Emigration, Vol. 3, 2023, pp. 330, 312, 318
- Mieczysław Tadeusz Janikowski (1912-1968), exh. cat. (Warszawa: Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie, 2004)
- Marek Szczęsny, Janikowski, exh. cat. (Paris: Institut Polonais, 1997)
- Mieczysław Tadeusz Janikowski obrazy abstrakcyjne/abstract paintings, exh. cat. (Kraków: Galeria Zderzak, 1990)
- Mieczyslaw Tadeusz Janikowski 1912-1968, exh. cat. (Warszawa: Centralne Biuro Wystaw Artystycznych, 1986)
- Mieczysław Janikowski 1912-1968, exh. cat. (Łódź: Muzeum Sztuki, 1974)
- Mieczyslaw Tadeusz Janikowski 1912-1968, exh. cat. (Köln: Die Galerie, 1972)
- ‘Arbroath is Well Represented in Scottish Artists’ Exhibition’, Arbroath Herald, 27 February 1948, p. 11
Related web links
- Hanina Fine Arts
- Mieczysław Tadeusz Janikowski 1912–1968: wystawa monograficzna
- Molski Gallery
- Olgerd Dziechciarz, ‘Malarz z Olkusza’, Olkuski Przegląd, 27 August 2018, Polish language
- ‘Władca trójkątów - Mieczysław Janikowski’, Weranda magazine, Polish language
Selected exhibitions
- Mieczyslaw T. Janikowski: Memorial Exhibition, Drian Galleries, London (1979)
- Solo exhibition, New Vision Centre Gallery, London (1956)
- Society of Scottish Artists, Edinburgh, Scotland (1948, 1946, 1945)
- Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, Scotland (1946)
- Society of Scottish Artists, Edinburgh, Scotland (1945)
