133 - KAROL KOZLOWSKI (POLISH-AMERICAN 1885-1969)

KAROL KOZLOWSKI (POLISH-AMERICAN 1885-1969) Village Scene, oil on canvas 74 x 103 cm (29 1/8 x 40 1/2 in.) framed dimensions: 79 x 108 cm (31 1/8 x 42 1/2 in.) PROVENANCE The Stanisław and Alicja Jonas Collection LOT NOTES Lots 25 through 71 in this auction, are being offered directly from the Estate of the esteemed Polish art collectors, Stanisław and Alicja Jonas, two remarkable individuals whose lives were defined by resilience, intellect, and a profound dedication to the arts. Stanisław Jonas, a survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto, built a life of purpose and compassion in New York as a respected psychiatrist and counselor. His deep appreciation for the arts was more than a personal passion; it was an extension of his worldview and a form of cultural preservation. Alicja Jonas, a gifted pianist, composer, and teacher, brought her own artistic brilliance to their shared life. Having endured the hardships of wartime Poland, she immigrated to the United States in the late 1960s to reunite with Stanisław and dedicated her career to music education and composition. Together, the Jonas’s created a home filled with creativity, conversation, and artistic exploration. Their art collection reflects not only a refined aesthetic sensibility but also a lifetime of personal connections with artists and gallerists. Many of the works were acquired directly from artists whose work they admired and whose friendships they cultivated. Their relationships with key figures in the Polish and New York art scenes were essential to the development of their collection. Among the artists represented are Barbara Falender, known for her intimate sculptural forms; Rafał Olbiński, celebrated for his dreamlike surrealism; Stanisław Młodożeniec, whose expressive color and form shaped postwar Polish painting; and Krystyna Brzechwa, whose delicate compositions reflect a poetic sensibility. The collection also includes two exceptional works by Henryk Stażewski, one of the leading figures of the Polish avant-garde and a pioneer of geometric abstraction in Eastern Europe. These pieces, rare in both quality and provenance, anchor the collection in the broader trajectory of modernist innovation. Over the years, the Jonas’s cultivated meaningful relationships with several galleries that supported emerging and established Polish artists, including the Zabriskie Gallery, and Z. Michael Legutko Gallery. Their collecting was never speculative; it was personal, intentional, and grounded in dialogue, friendship, and shared cultural history. This auction offers not only a selection of fine works of art but also a portrait of a life deeply engaged with the creative world. Each piece in this collection tells a story of connection, conviction, and cultural continuity. To collect from the Jonas estate is to inherit a piece of this remarkable legacy. We are honored to present the Stanisław and Alicja Jonas Collection, a testament to two lives lived with courage, elegance, and unwavering dedication to art. LOT NOTES Karol Kozlowski occupies a vital yet often overlooked space within the canon of American folk and outsider art. Born in Poland in 1885 and emigrating to the United States in the early 20th century, Kozlowski settled in the vibrant, working-class neighborhood ofGreenpoint, Brooklyn - then a bustling hub of Polish immigrants and industrial life. It was here, amidst the modest tenements and shipyards, that he developed a remarkable visual language rooted not in formal training, but in personal memory, imagination, and deep emotional resonance. Often referred to as a"naïve painter", Kozlowski was entirely self-taught, working in obscurity for much of his life. His paintings reflect a sincere, unfiltered approach to image-making—marked by flattened perspective, vivid color, and a deep affection for both real and remembered places. With subjects ranging from pastoral Polish villages to the urban rhythms of New York’s outer boroughs, his work captures a duality of identity—one eye turned toward an idealized homeland, the other documenting the immigrant experience in America. In an era when modernism and abstraction dominated the American art world, Kozlowski remained defiantly outside the mainstream. Yet his work aligns with a broader tradition ofnaïve and outsider artists. As interest in folk, outsider, and immigrant art histories continues to grow, Karol Kozlowski’s paintings are gaining recognition for theirhistorical importance and emotional depth. His unique visual archive of Polish-American life in early 20th-century Brooklyn offers both collectors and curators an invaluable window into a world rendered with honesty, devotion, and poetic simplicity. Keywords: Polish Art, Polish Painting, 19th Century Polish Art, Romanticism, Polish National Art N.B. Condition reports are available upon request. All lots are sold in as-is condition at the time of sale. Please note that any condition statement regarding works of art