Dimensions: 65 x 54 cm (inside frame)
signed lower right: 'KLIMEK'
Biography
The artist came from a large family; his father owned a general store in Skoczów, in the Cieszyn County. After graduating from high school in Cieszyn, Ludwik Klimek studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. In the spring of 1939, he received a scholarship and left for Paris, where he frequently visited the Louvre and admired the works of the masters of European painting—Titian, Goya, Poussin, and Rubens. Upon hearing news of the September Campaign, he decided to remain in Paris. After the Wehrmacht occupied the French capital, he took refuge in Aix-en-Provence. After 1947, he moved to the Gulf of Lion and lived in Menton. In 1951, in Vallauris, he met Pablo Picasso, who lived and worked there from 1948 to 1955. He also maintained a friendly relationship with Marc Chagall for many years. Together with Henri Matisse, who lived in Vence, he founded and directed the Biennale Internationale d'Art de Menton in 1951, where he exhibited his paintings. His works were awarded a silver medal in 1951 and 1953. He painted approximately 3,000 paintings—most of which were sold to private collections.
