DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.29195#0135
show a woman humiliated to the condition ofan animal. That has been done by Mr.
Suchorowski (Klosy, 1882,Vol. XXXV, No. 913, p. 405).
How may Gracjan Unger and the work of his gallery in the court of the Potocki
Palace be assessed retrospectively? His contemporaries observed that the primary
purpose of his gallery was commercial. Itsproprietor was interestedfirst andforemost
in selling his exhibits as quickly as possible in a viable commercial transaction (Bluszcz,
1880, No. 4, p. 29). Not only did the gallery accept items designated for sale, but
it also purchased works to be resold at a profit. The press wrote that his prices were
moderate enough for his business to be justified and advantageous both for buyers
and sellers. A no less significant source of income came from the tickets to his exhi-
bitions, which changed frequently enough and were diversified enough to draw in
the public (Konstantynow 2005).
A common observation made by his reviewers was that Unger displayed the works
of well-known artists, as well as those who were fashionable and whose work was
the talk of the town and sought after. On this list we find the names of virtually all
the most popular Polish painters of the latter half of the 19'*1 century: Jan Matejko,
Wojciech Gerson, Franciszek Zmurko, Henryk Siemiradzki, Wladyslaw Czachor-
ski, Wladyslaw Bakalowicz, Jan Styka, Tadeusz Ajdukiewicz, Jozef Szermentowski,
Juliusz and Wojciech Kossak, and Jozef Brandt. Unger also exhibited works by de-
ceased artists, such as Maurycy Gottlieb and Artur Grottger. His assortment was
exceptionally diversified; he also presented and offered drawings for sale, including
illustrations by Michal Elwiro Andriolli to Juliusz Sfowacki’s Balladyna, Jozef I.
Kraszewski’s Stara bash, Adam Mickiewicz’s Pan Tadeusz, and Wfadysfaw Motty’s
illustrations to the works of Lucjan Siemienski. In 1882 he put on an exhibition
entitled “An Album of Polish Painters”, with watercolours and drawings by Polish
artists working in Munich.
However, since the gallery’s profit did not satisfy its proprietor he resorted to
a measure which was popular in the 19th century: an additional incentive for visi-
tors in the form of a lottery, for which he assigned a total of 36 items. 22 were to be
rafffed among weekday visitors, and 14 by those attending the gallery on Sundays
and holidays. Tygodnik Ilustrowany (1882, No. 256, p. 263) advertised the opportu-
nity: There are many fine works in the gallery with the foremost signatures; those who
become their owners will be able to congratulate themselves that they acquired them in
an inexpensive and easy way. However, the lottery was not held because the gallery
closed shortly after this announcement was published. Nevertheless Unger’s inge-
nuity and busy activity knew no bounds. After the success, followed by a slight
slump, in the exhibition and sales of artworks, he set up Parisian-style news-stands
in Warsaw. This investment turned out to be a bull’s-eye winner.
Fig. 118-119. Jan Matejko, "The Prussian Homage", detail, 1880-1882, oils on canvas;
The Cloth Hall, National Museum in Krakow
Suchorowski (Klosy, 1882,Vol. XXXV, No. 913, p. 405).
How may Gracjan Unger and the work of his gallery in the court of the Potocki
Palace be assessed retrospectively? His contemporaries observed that the primary
purpose of his gallery was commercial. Itsproprietor was interestedfirst andforemost
in selling his exhibits as quickly as possible in a viable commercial transaction (Bluszcz,
1880, No. 4, p. 29). Not only did the gallery accept items designated for sale, but
it also purchased works to be resold at a profit. The press wrote that his prices were
moderate enough for his business to be justified and advantageous both for buyers
and sellers. A no less significant source of income came from the tickets to his exhi-
bitions, which changed frequently enough and were diversified enough to draw in
the public (Konstantynow 2005).
A common observation made by his reviewers was that Unger displayed the works
of well-known artists, as well as those who were fashionable and whose work was
the talk of the town and sought after. On this list we find the names of virtually all
the most popular Polish painters of the latter half of the 19'*1 century: Jan Matejko,
Wojciech Gerson, Franciszek Zmurko, Henryk Siemiradzki, Wladyslaw Czachor-
ski, Wladyslaw Bakalowicz, Jan Styka, Tadeusz Ajdukiewicz, Jozef Szermentowski,
Juliusz and Wojciech Kossak, and Jozef Brandt. Unger also exhibited works by de-
ceased artists, such as Maurycy Gottlieb and Artur Grottger. His assortment was
exceptionally diversified; he also presented and offered drawings for sale, including
illustrations by Michal Elwiro Andriolli to Juliusz Sfowacki’s Balladyna, Jozef I.
Kraszewski’s Stara bash, Adam Mickiewicz’s Pan Tadeusz, and Wfadysfaw Motty’s
illustrations to the works of Lucjan Siemienski. In 1882 he put on an exhibition
entitled “An Album of Polish Painters”, with watercolours and drawings by Polish
artists working in Munich.
However, since the gallery’s profit did not satisfy its proprietor he resorted to
a measure which was popular in the 19th century: an additional incentive for visi-
tors in the form of a lottery, for which he assigned a total of 36 items. 22 were to be
rafffed among weekday visitors, and 14 by those attending the gallery on Sundays
and holidays. Tygodnik Ilustrowany (1882, No. 256, p. 263) advertised the opportu-
nity: There are many fine works in the gallery with the foremost signatures; those who
become their owners will be able to congratulate themselves that they acquired them in
an inexpensive and easy way. However, the lottery was not held because the gallery
closed shortly after this announcement was published. Nevertheless Unger’s inge-
nuity and busy activity knew no bounds. After the success, followed by a slight
slump, in the exhibition and sales of artworks, he set up Parisian-style news-stands
in Warsaw. This investment turned out to be a bull’s-eye winner.
Fig. 118-119. Jan Matejko, "The Prussian Homage", detail, 1880-1882, oils on canvas;
The Cloth Hall, National Museum in Krakow