Yaroslav WASYLOWICZ PSTRAK, YOUNG GORAL

Watercolor, paper, 35 x 20 cm illus p-p., signed l.d.: Pstrak [18]97.

Ukrainian painter, draughtsman and printmaker. He initially studied painting with his uncle in Chernivtsi, and in 1895-1899 studied at the Munich academy, where, among other things, he became familiar with the pastel technique. In 1899, he settled in Lviv and soon afterwards traveled around Europe. The artist was friends with Ivan Trush, who he met in Lviv. He owed much of his popularity to his portrait work, and spent several times in the Hutsul region, which resulted in numerous landscapes, portraits of peasants and scenes from the life of the Hutsul people. Ca. 1909 he made paintings for the Orthodox churches in Verkhovyna and Ilitsa. He painted religious, battle and historical scenes, and is known for his satirical drawings for the Lvov magazines "Komar" and "Zwierciadło", book illustrations; a series of postcards published in Cracow and Lvov undoubtedly contributed to the popularization of his paintings.