Jan Lebenstein (1930 Brest Litovsk - 1999 Krakow), Axial figure, 1959

Biography
Painter and printmaker. Studied at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts in the studio of Artur Nacht-Samborski. He made his debut at the exhibition "Against War, Against Fascism" at the Warsaw Arsenal in 1955. In 1959, he received the Grand Prix at the First International Biennale of the Young in Paris for his series of paintings Axial Figures. Since then he lived permanently in Paris. In the following years, he drew themes from ancient literature, mythology and the Bible. He created a series devoted to depictions of prehistoric animals. He was associated with the milieu of the Parisian "Kultura" and, among other things, illustrated Gustaw Herling-Grudziński's short stories published there. In 1976 he received the A. Jurzykowski Foundation Award from New York, and in 1987 he received the independent Jan Cybis Award. His works are in the collections of the National Museums in Warsaw, Krakow and Poznan, as well as the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Nationale d'Art Moderne in Paris.