Course General Description

The guiding curricular principle of the Faculty of Painting is the concept, developed over years, of maintaining harmonious balance between the tradition of easel painting and contemporary trends in art. A graduate of the Faculty of Painting is a contemporary painter, creator and artist; on the one hand, fully familiar with the traditional technique, with historical knowledge concerning painting, and art in general, on the other, capable of facing the challenges of modernity and using means of expression of the 21st century. They also have knowledge and competence in the field of drawing, composition of planes and solids, large-format wall painting, artistic textiles, sculpture, selected techniques of printmaking, computer graphics, and visual activities in public space. A wide range of competences in these areas makes the graduate of the Faculty of Painting well equipped to manage in the difficult market of contemporary art competition. Specifically, to meet the riskiest challenges, these associated with creative process, or creation of new entities, new phenomena in the field of fine arts.

School General Description

Traditions of art education in Warsaw date back to the reign of king Stanisław August Poniatowski and the Painting Studio at the Royal Castle, run by Marcello Bacciarelli. He became an honorary dean of the Department of Fine Arts created at Warsaw University in 1816 – the first academic art school in the Polish capital. Following the closing down of the University, the Department was replaced by a School of Fine Arts in 1844. And towards the end of the 19th century, Warsaw art education was continued by Wojciech Gerson’s Drawing Studio, which educated the most distinguished Polish artists of the turn of the centuries. Today the Academy of Fine Arts consists of 9 faculties: Painting, Graphic Arts, Sculpture, Media Art, Conservation and Restoration of Works of Art, Design, Interior design, Stage Design and Management of Visual Culture. It is the largest academic art school in Poland. Besides its educational functions it plays an important part in the cultural life of the city and the nation. Its international standing has been consistently improving as a direct result of the developing co-operation with academic centres abroad.