Olga Boznańska - Childhood drawings circa 1875
Olga Boznańska - Childhood drawings circa 1875
Title: Landscape with a House in the Moonlight
Author: Olga Boznańska
Date: circa 1875
Type: Drawing
Medium: Pastel
Dimensions: height: 43 cm, width: 31 cm
This vertical drawing is one of Olga Boznańska’s childhood works. It depicts a nocturnal landscape with a solitary house set in an empty space, with a full moon in the background. The artist employed a simple horizontal composition. A line slightly above the center divides the night sky from the landscape. The palette is subdued, dominated by blues and greens, with vivid yellow accents.
The upper part shows a dark blue sky, touched with green tones softly blended into the pastel. At the top left is the moon—an uneven, round yellow patch that seems to pulse against the night sky through the strong color contrast.
A narrow yellow path runs diagonally across the green field, from the left edge down to the lower right corner. Its tone matches the moon’s, making it stand out strongly against the ground. The field itself is a muted green, darker along the horizon, with irregular blue marks scattered throughout. To the left and bottom, these are broader painted areas; near the upper left, they become wavering lines.
Beside the path, toward the lower right, stands a house. The perspective is skewed: we see it from the side, but the walls and rooflines, which should be perpendicular, are connected by a single straight line. The façade shares the field’s tone, separated only by faint red edges. The roof is brown with subtle yellow highlights and carries two chimneys, from which faint greenish smoke rises. Each of the two visible walls is dotted with six windows glowing in the same vivid yellow as the moon and path.
The drawing does not extend fully to the sheet’s edges, leaving irregular unpainted borders. In the lower left, on a blank fragment, appears the family crest of the artist—Nowina.
The softly blended pastels give the work a dreamlike quality, as if the scene were seen through the veil of sleep or memory. Already in this early attempt, one glimpses Boznańska’s sensitivity to atmosphere, subtlety, and light—traits that would become hallmarks of her mature style: blurred contours, diffused light, and free, painterly strokes that create a quiet, contemplative mood.
Title: Childhood Work – Shepherd with a Landscape
Author: Olga Boznańska
Date: circa 1875
Type: Drawing
Medium: Pastel
Dimensions: height: 27.8 cm, width: 32 cm
This horizontal drawing from Boznańska’s childhood depicts a shepherd with three sheep against a bright, cheerful landscape. The palette is vivid, dominated by greens and yellows with strong blue and white accents.
The sky fills the top part, separated by a clear horizon line placed at one-fifth of the sheet’s height. It is blue, softly fading into white near the horizon. Below stretches a grassy field, covering almost half the composition. Its edges are drawn with lively pastel strokes, while the center is smoothly blended.
The shepherd, located to the right of center, is shown full-length. He faces left, moving forward. His black hat frames a simplified face sketched in white pastel with minimal black lines for eyes, nose, and mouth. He wears a bright blue coat, widening downward like an “A,” the most eye-catching element of the drawing. In his hands he holds two black staffs, one resting on the ground, the other lifted behind him. His trousers are a muted yellow-green, his shoes black.
In the foreground stretches a yellow-orange plane reaching to the bottom edge, on which stand a dog and two sheep. They all move leftward. The dog is dark brown with a white muzzle, the sheep white with minimal black marks for details. To the far right, a house peeks in—the upper left corner of its red roof with a brown chimney and a pale greenish wall. White smoke rises from the chimney.
The family crest, *Nowina*, is inscribed in the lower left corner.
Title: Peasants in the Field
Author: Olga Boznańska
Date: circa 1875
Type: Drawing
Medium: Pastel on cardboard
Dimensions: height: 23.7 cm, width: 32.5 cm
This horizontal pastel drawing, also from Boznańska’s childhood, shows two peasants working in a field on a clear day. The colors are bright and intense, dominated by muted yellows and blues.
A pale blue sky with white light along the horizon fills the upper fifth of the image. The field is yellow, interspersed with patches of red, blue, green, and lighter tones, blended to create depth.
Two peasants stand in the center. The man on the left, facing forward, wears a dark hat with yellow highlights and a blue outfit resembling a jumpsuit. His hands and shoes are rendered in white patches. He carries a gray bucket in his left hand. His face is simplified, with black eyes and red lips.
The man on the right faces left, in profile. He wears a red hat, brown beard, blue shirt, and brown trousers. His left hand holds a black rake placed between the two figures, while his other hand is lifted slightly behind his back.
A narrow green strip runs along the bottom, grounding the figures. In the lower left corner is the crest *Nowina*.
Title: Rider on Horseback
Author: Olga Boznańska
Date: circa 1875
Type: Drawing
Medium: Pastel
Dimensions: unknown
This childhood drawing depicts a man on a white horse under a sunny sky. The horizontal format is dominated by green, with accents of blue and white.
At the center, the rider and horse face left, shown in profile. The man wears a black hat and a long blue coat with green tones, resembling a cloak or poncho. His trousers and boots are black. He holds the reins attached to the horse’s head.
The horse is white, drawn with loose pastel strokes, its mane and tail black. It appears in motion, legs bent as if trotting forward.
The background is a green meadow separated from the sky by a horizontal line. The sky occupies about two-fifths of the height, painted in soft blue with a large fluffy white cloud in the middle.
At the lower left is the artist’s crest, Nowina
These early works clearly foreshadow Olga Boznańska’s mature artistic style. Blurred contours, soft color patches, and subtle play of light already reveal her distinctive sensitivity. Even in these childlike pastels, one can sense the introspective, dreamlike atmosphere that would later define her painting.
Audio description prepared by Emilia Szymańska
Consultation: Adrian Wyka
Substantive Consultation: Urszula Kozakowska - Zaucha
Author: Olga Boznańska
Date: circa 1875
Type: Drawing
Medium: Pastel
Dimensions: height: 43 cm, width: 31 cm
This vertical drawing is one of Olga Boznańska’s childhood works. It depicts a nocturnal landscape with a solitary house set in an empty space, with a full moon in the background. The artist employed a simple horizontal composition. A line slightly above the center divides the night sky from the landscape. The palette is subdued, dominated by blues and greens, with vivid yellow accents.
The upper part shows a dark blue sky, touched with green tones softly blended into the pastel. At the top left is the moon—an uneven, round yellow patch that seems to pulse against the night sky through the strong color contrast.
A narrow yellow path runs diagonally across the green field, from the left edge down to the lower right corner. Its tone matches the moon’s, making it stand out strongly against the ground. The field itself is a muted green, darker along the horizon, with irregular blue marks scattered throughout. To the left and bottom, these are broader painted areas; near the upper left, they become wavering lines.
Beside the path, toward the lower right, stands a house. The perspective is skewed: we see it from the side, but the walls and rooflines, which should be perpendicular, are connected by a single straight line. The façade shares the field’s tone, separated only by faint red edges. The roof is brown with subtle yellow highlights and carries two chimneys, from which faint greenish smoke rises. Each of the two visible walls is dotted with six windows glowing in the same vivid yellow as the moon and path.
The drawing does not extend fully to the sheet’s edges, leaving irregular unpainted borders. In the lower left, on a blank fragment, appears the family crest of the artist—Nowina.
The softly blended pastels give the work a dreamlike quality, as if the scene were seen through the veil of sleep or memory. Already in this early attempt, one glimpses Boznańska’s sensitivity to atmosphere, subtlety, and light—traits that would become hallmarks of her mature style: blurred contours, diffused light, and free, painterly strokes that create a quiet, contemplative mood.
Title: Childhood Work – Shepherd with a Landscape
Author: Olga Boznańska
Date: circa 1875
Type: Drawing
Medium: Pastel
Dimensions: height: 27.8 cm, width: 32 cm
This horizontal drawing from Boznańska’s childhood depicts a shepherd with three sheep against a bright, cheerful landscape. The palette is vivid, dominated by greens and yellows with strong blue and white accents.
The sky fills the top part, separated by a clear horizon line placed at one-fifth of the sheet’s height. It is blue, softly fading into white near the horizon. Below stretches a grassy field, covering almost half the composition. Its edges are drawn with lively pastel strokes, while the center is smoothly blended.
The shepherd, located to the right of center, is shown full-length. He faces left, moving forward. His black hat frames a simplified face sketched in white pastel with minimal black lines for eyes, nose, and mouth. He wears a bright blue coat, widening downward like an “A,” the most eye-catching element of the drawing. In his hands he holds two black staffs, one resting on the ground, the other lifted behind him. His trousers are a muted yellow-green, his shoes black.
In the foreground stretches a yellow-orange plane reaching to the bottom edge, on which stand a dog and two sheep. They all move leftward. The dog is dark brown with a white muzzle, the sheep white with minimal black marks for details. To the far right, a house peeks in—the upper left corner of its red roof with a brown chimney and a pale greenish wall. White smoke rises from the chimney.
The family crest, *Nowina*, is inscribed in the lower left corner.
Title: Peasants in the Field
Author: Olga Boznańska
Date: circa 1875
Type: Drawing
Medium: Pastel on cardboard
Dimensions: height: 23.7 cm, width: 32.5 cm
This horizontal pastel drawing, also from Boznańska’s childhood, shows two peasants working in a field on a clear day. The colors are bright and intense, dominated by muted yellows and blues.
A pale blue sky with white light along the horizon fills the upper fifth of the image. The field is yellow, interspersed with patches of red, blue, green, and lighter tones, blended to create depth.
Two peasants stand in the center. The man on the left, facing forward, wears a dark hat with yellow highlights and a blue outfit resembling a jumpsuit. His hands and shoes are rendered in white patches. He carries a gray bucket in his left hand. His face is simplified, with black eyes and red lips.
The man on the right faces left, in profile. He wears a red hat, brown beard, blue shirt, and brown trousers. His left hand holds a black rake placed between the two figures, while his other hand is lifted slightly behind his back.
A narrow green strip runs along the bottom, grounding the figures. In the lower left corner is the crest *Nowina*.
Title: Rider on Horseback
Author: Olga Boznańska
Date: circa 1875
Type: Drawing
Medium: Pastel
Dimensions: unknown
This childhood drawing depicts a man on a white horse under a sunny sky. The horizontal format is dominated by green, with accents of blue and white.
At the center, the rider and horse face left, shown in profile. The man wears a black hat and a long blue coat with green tones, resembling a cloak or poncho. His trousers and boots are black. He holds the reins attached to the horse’s head.
The horse is white, drawn with loose pastel strokes, its mane and tail black. It appears in motion, legs bent as if trotting forward.
The background is a green meadow separated from the sky by a horizontal line. The sky occupies about two-fifths of the height, painted in soft blue with a large fluffy white cloud in the middle.
At the lower left is the artist’s crest, Nowina
These early works clearly foreshadow Olga Boznańska’s mature artistic style. Blurred contours, soft color patches, and subtle play of light already reveal her distinctive sensitivity. Even in these childlike pastels, one can sense the introspective, dreamlike atmosphere that would later define her painting.
Audio description prepared by Emilia Szymańska
Consultation: Adrian Wyka
Substantive Consultation: Urszula Kozakowska - Zaucha