Tadeusz Styka, PORTRET ADASIA, ca. 1950

68,8 x 61,0 cm - oil, canvas

Signed p. d.: TADE STYKA_

On the reverse, on the g. strip of the loom, a note by the artist's hand (in ink): All rights to reproduce | reserved by artist.



Provenance:

Portrait painted by Tadeusz Styka as a gift for his uncle's sister.

It has remained in the hands of the family of the portrayed since its creation until now.



The portrayed Adaś is Adam Kiernik (1949-2016), born on August 4, 1949 in Douglaston, New York. His father Stanislaw Kiernik was a prominent lawyer at the United Nations, and his mother Maria Kiernik was the niece of Jan Styka. Adam's great-grandfather Wladyslaw was Minister of the Interior and Minister of Agriculture during the Second Republic.

Although Adam Kiernik was born and raised in the United States, he felt a deep connection to Poland, and especially to Bochnia, his father's hometown. Thanks to this heritage, he was fluent in Polish and actively involved in Polish-American initiatives for democratic change in Poland.

In the 1980s, Kiernik was one of the activists of the Polish-American organization "Bridge." The goal of this organization was to provide moral and political support for "Solidarity." "Bridge" activists actively lobbied influential politicians - President Ronald Reagan, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Jan Nowak-Jezioranski, also in the U.S. Senate - for support for the independent trade union movement in Poland. In addition, they organized material assistance for the families of imprisoned and interned oppositionists.

Adam Kiernik's most important initiative was the "Renounce Yalta" campaign, which aimed to make Americans aware of the damaging Yalta resolutions of 1945. Kiernik also wrote a book with the same title, which he submitted, along with a petition, to the U.S. Congress, demanding condemnation of the treaty that brought Eastern Europe under the influence of the Soviet Union. This action culminated in the Bridge activists unfurling a huge banner reading "Solidarity Lives. Overthrow Yalta" under the famous Hollywood sign in Los Angeles on August 12, 1984.

Kiernik's activism brought concrete results: On August 16, 1985, President Ronald Reagan signed a resolution in the version proposed by Adam Kiernik, previously adopted by Congress. This was a symbolic but extremely important victory.

For his outstanding contributions to democracy in Poland and his commitment to preserving Poland's national heritage, Adam Kiernik was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland in 2016. He died in Warsaw on August 9, 2016.



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Tadeusz Styka (Kielce 1889 - New York 1954) - son of painter Jan and older brother of Adam Styka, already as a child showed extraordinary artistic abilities. His first teacher was his father. Later Tadeusz studied in Paris with Eugene Carriere and Jean-Jacques Henner. From an early age he exhibited a lot - at the Paris Salons and in many cities in France, London, New York, Chicago, Canada and Poland. He often collaborated with his father by making, among other things, sketches for the intended panorama of the Battle of Grunwald. From 1929 he lived in New York, however, keeping his studio in Paris. He was primarily a portrait painter, painting aristocracy, beautiful women and famous people (Portrait of Leo Tolstoy (1903), Portrait of Pola Negri, Portrait of Ignacy Jan Paderewski). In addition, he was an excellent animalist painter (Lions at a watering hole). He also painted symbolic scenes, genre scenes and religious paintings; the latter often together with his brother Adam.