Alexander Andrzej Łabiniec

About artist

Born
14.11.1930
Died
23.09.2010
Country
Poland

Born in Goraj, 1930 and died in Bielsko-Biała, 2010; studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków under Professor Karol Frycz, Professor Andrzej Stopka and Professor Zbigniew Pronaszko; graduated in 1954; completed a further course of studies in Colour Psychology at the Centre de Recherches d'Ambiances in Paris; obtained a diploma in Theatre Direction after taking an examination held by the Ministry of Culture and Art. An artist painter, graphic artist, director, stage designer and university lecturer. Winner of artistic and state awards, including the Golden Mask for lifetime achievement (1993) and the Icarus Award of the Mayor of Bielsko-Biała (1993). A stage designer and director at the “Banialuka” Puppet Theatre in Bielsko-Biała (1954–96). Created about 180 stage designs for puppet and drama theatre productions, operas, operettas and TVP (Polish State Television). Director of Galeria Bielska BWA (1975-80), and later also a lecturer at the Cieszyn Branch of Silesian University. For 55 years associated with Bielsko-Biała’s “Banialuka” Puppet Theatre, a co-designer of its artistic style as a visual art theatre. Although theatre was the main focus of his artistic endeavours he also showed interest in other areas of art. He always looked for new ways and forms of artistic expression. He was attracted to new challenges. Apart from his paintings he also created posters, illustrations for books and graphic artwork for various publications. He was also a puppet theatre stage designer, director and scriptwriter. For many years he worked closely with TV companies (as a stage designer for television theatre productions). He was very strongly linked with the Polish State Television (TVP) Centre in Katowice, for which he created visual settings for cultural, art, entertainment, documentary and news programmes. In his paintings, regardless of whether they showed abstract art, landscapes, portraits, nudes or historical pastiches, he attached primary importance to colour, mood and poetic atmosphere, sometimes accompanied by witty remarks and a surprising game of associations. What mattered to him were the proportion of colour and lines, movement and space, and his personal experiences during the creative process. He exhibited in both Poland and other countries, including such places as the Tadeusz Kantor Cricot 2 Theatre (Kraków, 1958), the US (1960, 1961), Spain (1989) and Bielsko-Biała, where his exhibitions were staged frequently in many locations including Galeria Bielska BWA (1959, 1992, 1997, 2004), the Bielsko Cultural Centre (2002), the Regional Museum (2006), the halls of the University of Technology and Humanities (2008) and Galeria Akcent (2009, as part of the programme Young People and Artists Bitten by the Art Bug run by Galeria Bielska BWA).

Works

Alexander Andrzej Łabiniec

Informel 2

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Alexander Andrzej Łabiniec

Bielsko Landscape

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Alexander Andrzej Łabiniec

King's Head

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