Born in Waliły near Gródek, 1957; studied at the Faculty of Painting of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw (1979–1984); Honours’ Degree under Prof Tadeusz Dominik in 1984; founder of Gościnna Pracownia Malarstwa (Hospitable Painting Studio) which he has run in his Alma Mater since 1996; currently holds the position of associate professor at the Academy and heads the “Painting Space” studio at the Faculty of Media Art and Scenography. For his students he’s a leading authority and mentor committed to the organization of plein air and workshops – a spiritual guide and master. He is an ambassador for Polish contemporary art abroad. In 2001 he represented Poland at the 49th Painting Biennial in Venice. Winner of numerous prestigious awards, including the Jan Cybis Award for his lifetime achievements in painting (1999), the Zofia and Jerzy Nowosielski Award (2000), the Polityka Magazine Passport Award for “creative activity in the Polish borderlands and recognition in metropoles” (2000). In 2007 he was awarded the Grand Prize of the Culture Foundation for the year 2006. In 2008 he received the title of Ambassador for the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue. The artist stresses his Belarusian roots and supports initiatives aimed at the energizing of Belarusian culture. In 2011 he received the Order of Polonia Restituta. The original form of his painting is a result of observation and synthesis of the surrounding landscape. In the late 1980s he decided to reject all the allusive character of art, concentrating instead on purely painting values, such as the colour, texture, chiaroscuro. He uses primary colours and sometimes contrasts of supplementary colours. Two important elements of his work are the scale and monumentality. He regards painting as the ultimate form of art, an omnipresent creation since time immemorial, which he expresses by means of very large canvases, painting the entire exhibition space or building painting installations connecting the painting with the architectural context. Apart from canvas paintings the artist has also created over 30 murals and paintings on partitioning walls, floors, columns and other architectural elements, including those in public spaces.