Jacek Malczewski

Private collection, Poland (acquired from the artist) 
Sale: Sotheby's, London, 27 June 2007, lot 80
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner

Jacek Malczewski is regarded as the father of Polish Symbolism and one of the greatest artists in the history of Polish art. His highly original works combine symbolism, mysticism and nationalism. Malczewski lived as a child in the countryside in north-central Poland and the present work, depicting a farm worker, is testament to the artist’s love of the natural environment.

By the early twentieth century Malczewski was an established and accomplished artist. Four years before Returning from the Fields was painted, Malczewski completed one of his most famous and ambitious canvases titled Błędne koło (National Museum in Krakow). In 1912 he was elected Rector of the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow, where he had served as a professor.