Alicja Wahl (12 October 1932 â 19 October 2020) was a Polish artist. She is known for her contribution to the cultural life of Warsaw in the 1980s and 1990s.
Wahl was born on 12 October 1932 in Warsaw. She studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw from 1952 to 1957, majoring in Painting under the guidance of Prof. . In 1958, she completed an annex to her diploma in the Ceramics Department at the Academy of Fine Arts, under the supervision of Prof. . She pursued her studies at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts simultaneously with her twin sister, . Starting from 1961, the two artists began exhibiting together. Their first exhibition at the Krzywe Koà Âo Gallery featured ceramics, and subsequent exhibitions showcased drawings and paintings.
In 1979, Alicja Wahl opened her own art gallery in her home in Warsaw's à »oliborz district, initially running it in collaboration with her sister, Boà ¼ena Wahl. This gallery was one of the first private art institutions of its kind in Poland. The specialized in presenting artists who embraced a wide range of surrealistic styles and poetics, as well as expressive and metaphorical figuration, reflecting the artistic interests of the gallery's founder. Alicja Wahl's ambition was to gather around her gallery the most outstanding Polish painters, sculptors, and graphic artists. The gallery exhibited artists such as , , , Henryk Tomaszewski, Franciszek Starowieyski, , Zdzisà Âaw Beksià Âski, Tadeusz Dominik, , Jacek Waltoà Â, , , Waldemar à Âwierzy, and others. The gallery also hosted retrospective exhibitions of artists like Witkacy and Bruno Schulz, as well as Alfred Lenica. For many years, Galeria A. B. Wahl served as an important meeting place, where writers, theater and film artists, and diplomats frequented.
In her personal life, she was married to the writer Roman Bratny from 1954 to 1968, with whom she had a daughter, Julia. Her granddaughter is Natalia Luniak, a toy designer, founder of Kalimba and president of the Alicja and Boà ¼ena Wahl Foundation.
The Wahl sisters gained fame in the 1960s with their impressive drawings inspired by literary works from authors such as Homer, Miguel de Cervantes, Marcel Proust, Franz Kafka, Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, and more. These drawings presented their unique interpretations of symbols found in literature and were exhibited in galleries in Paris, New York, Stockholm, and Berlin. Critics noted their distinctive style, untouched by external influences and free from mannerisms.
In the 60s and 70s, Alicja Wahl collaborated with various publications and publishers as an illustrator among others:, and Szpilki. She designed book covers for works by authors such as Oscar Wilde, Carl Zuckmayer, August Strindberg, Roman Bratny, and Leopold Buczkowski. She also created the famous illustrations for the first edition of Witkacy's , which caused such outrage by the censors that the entire print run was withdrawn to remove a "too erotic" illustration from the title page.
Alicja and her sister Boà ¼ena Wahl also contributed to the set design for Television Theater (e.g., "Oczy sàogniem, czoà Âo jest zwierciadà Âem" directed by Olga Lipià Âska in 1966, "Zemsta sieroty" directed by in 1968, "Kurka wodna" directed by in 1971, "Krzesà Âo w szczerym polu" directed by Janusz Majewski in 1970, "Misterium niedzielne" directed by Krystyna Sznerr in 1971) and for cabarets such as "Wieczór ze Szpakiem" in 1966, "Divertimento c-moll" in 1966, and the Kabaret Starszych Panów, episode XVI "Zaopiekujcie siàLeonem."
Alicja Wahl's works can be found in public collections such as the National Museum in Warsaw, the National Museum in Kielce, the National Museum in Szczecin, the ZachÃÂta - National Gallery, and the Museum of Literature in Warsaw. Additionally, her art is part of private collections, including FAMM (Femmes Artistes du Musée de Mougins) and Graà ¼yna Kulczyk's collection.
Initially, the artistic works of both sisters represented a similar style and dealt with related realms of experiences, such as feelings of solitude, the drama of existence, the mysterious forces of nature, sisterhood, and sexuality. It was only in the 1970s that their styles became more distinct, with Alicja introducing color and brightening her palette, while still emphasizing figuration and feminine sexuality. In the 1970s, working in the isolated context of communist Poland, without access to second-wave feminist theoretical writings, she addressed this topic in a unique and intuitive way. Her erotic imagery was filled with tension, humor, and surreal creatures that combined human and non-human attributes. Her work from this period can be described as bodily surrealism.
Starting in the 1980s, Alicja Wahl began to focus on painting, which eventually dominated her artistic practice. She replaced her precise lines with broad strokes of paint, with light becoming a central element in modeling figures and creating the atmosphere of her canvases. Her expressive works from this period echoed influences from luminism, the styles of Caravaggio, and the techniques of William Turner. The predominant theme in her paintings during this period was the portrayal of the female figure.