Author: Römer (Römerówna) Helena, 1860 - 1946
Created: 1st-2nd decade of the 20th century.
Material / technique: oil on canvas.
Dimensions: 47x38 cm.
Signature: H. Romerowna (in the bottom-right corner of the painting).
HELENA RÖMERÓWNA (1860–1946) was a member of the Römer family of artists. She lived in Vilnius for quite a long time, and before the First World War she even set up her own art school (Szkoła malarstwa Heleny Römerówny), which operated right up to the German occupation in 1915. She was famous for her landscapes and portraits, but her work also includes still-lifes. This one has a very traditional composition, reflecting Römerówna’s teaching practice and the careful arrangement of objects to develop students’ skills in painting from life. At the same time, it is a very gentle and subtle picture. Everything is subdued and unassuming, but taken all together, the composition emits a lucid and quiet joy. Römerówna was not a celebrity, but her pictures are pleasant and domestic, qualities which are appreciated by the collectors of her works.
Reference: Art Album “Objects on show”. Compiled by G. Jankevičiūtė. Vilnius, ELLEX VALIUNAS, 2017, P. 94.
Exhibitions: Académie de Vilna, 2017
October 5 - November 26, National Gallery of Art, Vilnius.
Published: Académie de Vilna. VILNIUS DRAWING SCHOOL 1866–1915. Exhibition Catalogue. Compiled by dr. J. Širkaitė, Vilnius 2017, Cat. No. 338 P. 311; Art Album “Objects on show”. Compiled by G. Jankevičiūtė. Vilnius, ELLEX VALIUNAS, 2017, P. 95, Cat. No. 103, P. 282.
Photograph: display in the exhibition Académie de Vilna, 2017 October 5 - November 26, National Gallery of Art, Vilnius.