This vertical composition depicts four young men dressed in traditional highlander (góralski) attire. They stand in a flower-filled meadow on a sunny day. The dominant tones are white, brown, and green.

In the foreground, at the centre of the composition, stands the first man. He faces the viewer and is shown from the waist up. His figure occupies the full width and two-thirds of the height of the drawing. He wears a kłobuk, a black felt highlander hat with a brim. His hair is very short and light, visible only at the sides. His head is slightly tilted upward. He has a broad forehead, and a slender, elongated face. His eyebrows are dark blond. His light blue eyes are directed upward. His nose is long and narrow, and his lips are thin and closed.

He is dressed in a white long-sleeved shirt, over which he wears a wide, dark brown belt extending from chest to hips. At the centre of the belt are three buckles arranged vertically. Above them sits a rectangular decorative element, equal in length to the buckles. This rectangle features small round gold and silver elements, arranged in two horizontal rows of larger circles, with smaller circles filling the space between.

Below the shirt, a portion of his trousers is visible. They are white, adorned with vertical strips in navy and violet. The man holds a scythe in his right hand, resting it on his right shoulder. His arm is bent, and the blade extends beyond the edge of the composition. His left hand rests on his hip. His appearance is highly detailed and refined.

In the background, three more men stand facing the viewer. Their legs are partially obscured by the figure in the foreground. Their faces are rendered with less precision.

The man on the right stands slightly turned to the left. The left side of his figure extends beyond the frame. He wears a black kłobuk, with dark strands of hair visible on his forehead. He has a slender face, dark eyebrows and eyes, a short nose with a slight bump, and thin, closed lips. He wears a white shirt under a serdak—a sheepskin vest trimmed with fur. The vest is light red with a green vertical stripe along the inner edge. In his right hand he holds a scythe resting on his right shoulder, with the blade extending beyond the right edge. He wears long white trousers with wide legs that cover his feet.

On the left stands another man, partially extending beyond the frame. His long, oval-shaped head is topped with a black kłobuk. His eyebrows are thin, sketched with two lines. His eyes are large and light, without clearly defined pupils. His nose is slender and his lips are closed. He wears a white long-sleeved shirt and a serdak trimmed with dark fur. Only a small portion of the vest on his right shoulder is visible, decorated with green and red patterns. Over his left shoulder, he wears a white cucha—a type of cloak or poncho. Embroidered on it is a red flower. Beneath the cucha is a light green waistcoat. A small section of his trousers is visible; they are multicoloured with an irregular pattern. He holds a scythe in his left hand, resting it on his left shoulder. Only the wooden handle remains in view, as the blade extends beyond the top edge.

Behind them, to the right, stands the fourth man, slightly turned left. He also wears a black kłobuk, fully covering his hair. His thin face features light eyebrows and eyes. His nose is narrow and his lips closed. His gaze is directed toward a point in the upper left. He wears a white shirt. His arms are obscured by the figures in front of him. To the right of his head, the handle of a scythe is visible, held in his left hand.

The space behind the figures is filled with green grass dotted with small yellow flowers.

Each figure seems absorbed in his own world, separated by their differing gazes. They share the same space, but remain isolated, introspective. Spatial depth is disrupted—the ground on which the figures stand fills the entire background, leaving no room for a horizon or distant perspective. It appears to rise up to their backs. The highlanders' figures are elevated beyond the ordinary, approaching the sacred.

Source: Text by Urszula Makowska on Mowers
Audiodescription: Emilia Szymańska
Consultation: Adrian Wyka
Expert Content Consultation: Irena Buchenfeld