Staszka 1935

Zygmunt Waliszewski painted this portrait of a young girl, Staszka, with oils and a clear love for color. The whole painting buzzes with these staccato marks, like confetti thrown at a party. The marks build up a surface that feels both childlike in its directness and incredibly sophisticated in its awareness of the materiality of paint. Look how the brushstrokes dance around her face, capturing a sense of her youthful energy. I’m drawn to the patchwork of colors in her skirt. Each square is a little world of its own, built from layers of blues, greens, and browns. It’s as if Waliszewski is not just depicting fabric, but the very act of seeing itself. You might also see echoes of Bonnard in the way he uses color to create an atmosphere. Both artists share this focus on process, with the painting becoming as much about the journey as the destination. With Waliszewski, this process allows for all kinds of oddness to occur, but it all comes together in the end.