Waldemar Smolarek

Waldemar Smolarek was born on September 5, 1937 in Warsaw. During World War II, his father was sent to the concentration camp in Mathausen, where he died in the spring of 1945 while trying to escape. From then on, together with his brother Apolinary, he was brought up by his mother. He became independent very quickly. He became interested in metalwork and painting. Together with his brother, he attended art classes in Warsaw's Praga district. His artistic abilities were noticed by the outstanding Polish painter Aleksander Kobzdej and prof. Zygmunt Tomkiewicz, with whom he studied in a private studio at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts, and then continued his studies at the Wincenty Śliwiński Study. In 1958 he began to exhibit his works. His achievements aroused more and more interest.

In the years 1962-1967 he was a co-organizer of independent exhibitions on the defensive walls of old Warsaw, mainly on the Barbican. The location was a bull's-eye: crowds of tourists, including many foreign ones, passed by there every day. Works by Jan Naliwajko, Zbigniew Kupczyński, Janusz Wagner and the Smolarek brothers, among others, became recognizable and willingly bought by the guests. Waldemar Smolarek was an active participant and organizer of many formal and informal exhibitions. His work has acquired universal features: from metalwork, which he dabbled in in his early youth, through graphics, to oil works on canvas and paper. However, he mainly dealt with abstract art. Although it was no longer the leading direction – the era of Kandinsky, Klee, Pollock or Malevich had passed – abstract art still enjoyed great interest – and Waldemar Smolarek himself began to achieve success. His works were not secondary, they brought a breath of freshness. He contested reality and tradition. Like his great masters, he rejected all forms of realistic representation. His paintings also had no reference in the real world. He was constantly looking for new forms, but rejected all figures. He painted, but did not use any specific objects. Its form became: vertical - horizontal, line, spot.

This is painting whose main assumption was to move away from and liberate oneself from a specific subject, reality and resignation from imitating nature. In 1968 he emigrated from Poland. At first he stayed in Sweden, and then went to Canada. He lived in Vancouver. He was creating all the time. He met and collaborated with many recognized painters, including Salvador Dali, which is not without significance for his artistic work. Waldemar Smolarek's works are exhibited all over the world. Many of them went to the world's galleries and museums, as well as to private collectors. He was a socially engaged artist. He donated his paintings to charities, including supporting cancer foundations. He was one of the creators of world culture, which was appreciated in "Who is who in the World". He died suddenly in Vancouver on August 22, 2010.