Stanisław Sławomir Blatton was born in Limanowa, General Governorate for the Occupied Polish Region (now Poland) in 1943. In 1970, he received a scholarship from the Polish Ministry of Culture to pursue further studies and as a result immigrated to London, England. An a active member of The London Group, his varied oeuvre latterly focusses on figurative watercolours. He has also taught etching for many years and worked as a conservation officer at the National Gallery, London.
Artist Stanisław Sławomir Blatton was born in Limanowa, General Governorate for the Occupied Polish Region (now Poland) in 1943, where remained in hiding with his parents during the remainder of the Second World War. After the war ended, he lived briefly in Krakow, and then in Warsaw. Between 1969 and 1993, he studied at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts, earning an MA in Painting and Graphics. During his studies he was a member of the AUT Group and showcased his work in several Polish exhibitions, including The Festival of Polish Art and Young Contemporaries. In 1970, he received a scholarship from the Polish Ministry of Culture to pursue further studies and, as a result, immigrated to London, England, settling there permanently. For a period, he also worked as a graphic designer under the pseudonym Roslow Szaybo.
Blatton’s oeuvre includes photography, print, and painting in oils and watercolours, with the latter now being his preferred medium. His practice predominantly includes figurative work, merging traditional and modern styles. He uses classical themes for allegorical expression, with vivid colours and emotion to transcend mere illustration. Among his subjects are landscapes, reinterpretations of old masters, and a series of 600 female nude watercolours, which aim for a fresh perspective on natural forms. He paints in an expressive style, with vibrant colours and distorted figures to convey emotions, while his ‘[…] sketchy, energetic lines, figurative subject and timeless quality, calls to mind the powerful draughtsmanship of fellow Pole, Feliks Topolski,’ (Dickson, p. 107, 2020).
In 1997, he was elected a member of The London Group - an independent artist-led exhibiting body which was originally founded in 1913 to challenge the autonomy of the mainstream English art institutions - and regularly exhibits with them at the Cello Factory and other venues. In 2014 his work was shown at the Graves Gallery, Sheffield as part of Pole Position – Polish Art in Britain 1939–1989 , an exhibition showcasing the private collection belonging to London collector, Matthew Bateson. In 2017 Blatton's work featured in Ben Uri's survey exhibition: Art Out of the Bloodlands: A Century of Polish Artists in Britain, centering on Polish refugee and migrant artists and their influence on visual culture in Britain throughout the past century (see accompanying catalogue, From Adler to Zulawski: A Century of Polish Art in Britain (London: BURU, 2020)). The London Group’s Member exhibition Visions of Light held at the Willesden Gallery (2019-20) presented the contrasting works of Blatton and Protoklis Nicola. Blatton's art, probing the relationship between image, language and ideology, explored issues around totalitarianism and the political struggles of the last century, with the artist using the term ‘Political landscapes’ to describe his ironic merging of text and image to reflect on the legacies of Hitler and Stalin. His commitment to challenging norms, whether aesthetic or political, gives his work a powerful poignancy. In contrast, Nicola's icon paintings focused on spiritual ascent, using simple forms and limited colours to express the journey towards godly union, highlighting a continuing and dynamic relationship with the divine, marked by wonder and curiosity. Blatton's subsequent solo exhibition at Willesden Library, Corpus: A Presentation of Bodies (2021-22), controversially featured a range of his watercolours made in London - part of the larger group of 600 aforementioned nudes created over the span of a decade - which depict the distorted human form. These works, marked by intense physiological awareness, are vivid and raw. They use the medium's natural flows and textures as metaphors and to mirror the human body's complexity. Dynamic brushstrokes capture both the changing tempos within the body and the interplay of energy between artist and sitter.
Blatton has also been active as a teacher. From 1975 to 2004, he taught etching at the Working Men’s College for Men and Women in London, earning the Duke of York Medal for his contributions to adult education. He also served for 13 years as a Conservation Officer in the Framing Department at the National Gallery, London. He is a member of the Association of Polish Artists in Great Britain (APA), United Kingdom Institute for Conservation, and the Association of Polish Visual Artists. Stanisław Blatton lives and works in London. His art is not included in any UK public collections.