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Prizewinner
of Oskar Kolberg reward
"Recognition for Folk Culture" in 2006
The artistic activity of Eugeniusz Brożek is well-known among the sympathizers of his art. Many of his paintings belong to the national collections, inter alia Ethnograpic Museum in Cracow, Warsaw, Toruń, The National Museum in Kielce and Jacek Malczewski Museum in Radom as well as to prestigious galleries in Australia, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and USA.
Eugeniusz Brożek was born on 22th of August in 1947, in working-class family in Przełaj. After finishing the Primary School he went to Sosnowiec where he graduated from the Mining School of Industry. For three years Brożek was working in mine and then in "Katowice" Steelworks and The Boiler Factory in Racibórz. In 1976 Brożek came back to Sędziszów where he started working in "Sefako" Boiler Factory. The painter was also working as a conductor and then as a supervisor of passenger trains.
Eugeniusz Brożek was always interested in painting. When he was working in Sosnowiec he met some artists and as a result Eugeniusz Brożek started painting. However, after one year Brożek quitted that activity. When he settled in Sędziszów he tried again painting. Brożek started working with the group of painters-amateurs who were based in Community Centre in Jędrzejów and later with the group "Sędziwoje".
Till the year 1981 he was painting only for pleasure. First time Brożek showed his paintings in Community Centre in Kielce where he was also rewarded.
One year later the painter had his own exhibition in the National Museum in Kielce. During next years his artistic activity Brożek had many exhibitions and was taking part in numerous competitions at local and national level during which he was always rewarded. Moreover, Eugeniusz Brożek was a prizewinner in National Competition of Folk Art "Ojczyzna" announced by Association of Folk Artists in Lublin to which Brożek belongs since 1983. In this year there is Eugeniusz Brożek's jubilee of his 25-year work. His jubilee was a chance to present all his paintings at the exhibition in Community Centre in Sędziszów.
Eugeniusz Brożek is a painter with numerous interests. His paintings present different subjects which are connected with the rural scenery, religious or fabulous things. Brożek likes the country and he paints countryside as he remembers from the childhood: with wooden huts blended into the picturesque scenery and the church in the background. He describes the daily activities as well as the holidays: the work on the land, farm and the former habits and rituals. Brożek looks back on history and the current social and political events. However, in Brożek’s paintings the content is not as important as the style of the painting. It appeals to recipients in an easy and comprehensible way. Brożek does not care about the correctness of his paintings as he always emphasizes them with the black outline.
The painter can do it because of his imagination, intuitively feeling for style, composition and colour. Each painting has a unique climate, coloration and a rich content. Paintings of Eugeniusz Brożek are colorful and cheerful as if they were painted in defiance of reality in which he has to live.
Each artist looks for his own place in the art. From among many talented painters only a few achieved their aims. Eugeniusz Brożek found his own place in the art called naive. Naivety of Brożek's paintings means uniqueness and the way he perceives the reality.
Brożek is regarded as an "odd", "individualist" because he is not afraid to paint in a different, his own way: he does not imitate the reality but he creates it. Brożek is also called a folk artist for that reason that many of his paintings describe the rural scenery.
Eugeniusz Brożek is already a mature painter with well formed an artistic personality. He is still looking for new forms and means of expression to express what is in his mind.
His creativity combined with a unique talent makes Eugeniusz Brożek an unusual artist with a high status in the Polish Art.
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