Niobe – sculpture

Technique: cast bronze

Dimensions: 55 cm (H), 150 cm (W), 100 cm (D)

Object: This sculptural composition presents a highly simplified female figure in a horizontal arrangement. The massive form, cast in a single piece of dark-patinated bronze, is locally characterized by an irregular, textured surface. The figure is coarse, her silhouette treated schematically. Only some parts of the body are clearly defined, such as the head, torso and pulled up legs, compacted into a single shape. The artist depicted a mythological scene inspired by Niobe, the queen of Thebes, who – devastated by the loss of her children – was turned into a rock by Zeus. The sculpture was acquired by the Department of Culture of the Gdańsk City Council and transferred to the National Museum in Gdańsk on 29 December 1973. Since 1976, Niobe has formed part of the open-air sculpture exhibition in Oliwa Park. The work was set on a 65 cm high granite plinth measuring 94 × 76 cm at the base. The statue is not signed.

Place: The sculpture is integrated into the natural landscape of the northern part of the Adam Mickiewicz Park in Oliwa. It forms part of the Gallery of Contemporary Gdańsk Sculpture from the collection of the National Museum in Gdańsk, created on the initiative of the Museum, the District Board of the Association of Polish Artists and Designers (ZPAP) and the City Council. The outdoor gallery, showcasing works by artists from different generations, was officially opened on 30 March 1976.

Information about the author:

Janina Stefanowicz-Schmidt (b. 1930 in Warsaw) completed the Secondary Art School in Gdynia, before moving on to study at the Faculty of Sculpture of the State High School of Visual Arts (PWSSP) in Gdańsk – the present-day Academy of Fine Arts. She graduated from Prof. Stanisław Horno-Popławski’s studio in 1955. She took part in the reconstruction of sculptural elements of the historic architecture of Gdańsk’s Główne Miasto. Between 1954 and 2003, she was employed at her alma mater. In 1990 she became associate professor, and in 1998 received full professorship. Stefanowicz-Schmidt is the author of sculptures, monuments, medals and figurative sculptures on religious subjects created in various materials: stone, wood, bronze and ceramics. These include the figure of Christ as the Man of Sorrows (1964) in the Priestly Chapel of St. Mary’s Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Gdańsk, a portal in the Church of the Pallottine Fathers in Gdańsk and chancel decoration in the Church of the Resurrection in Gdańsk (1995–2001).

Condition of the object: good, the plinth needs to be stabilized

Owner/guardian: The National Museum in Gdańsk

Author of the entry: Andrzej Zagrobelny