Birdcage 1890

Olga Boznanska painted this somber, subdued oil-on-canvas work, “Birdcage”, during a time of significant social upheaval in Europe. The painting's subject matter—a bird confined within a cage—can be viewed through a lens of social commentary relevant to the artist’s lifetime. Boznanska was a Polish expatriate living and working in France. Her experience as a woman artist in the male-dominated art world of the late 19th and early 20th centuries can be seen as a form of social imprisonment. The birdcage metaphor becomes particularly potent when considering Poland's complex history. Poland was partitioned and under foreign control for much of Boznanska's life. To better understand Boznanska’s "Birdcage," we can turn to her biography and the cultural context of her life. Diaries, letters, and contemporary press are all important sources of information for an art historian seeking to illuminate the relationship between the artist's life and the deeper meaning of her work.