Zbigniew Makowski: Narrow Danube No. 5

I met Zbigniew Makowski in April 2007 in Warsaw. I visited the artist in his apartment in Mokotów. The purpose of my visit was to discuss the possibility of preparing an exhibition in Atlas Sztuki. The creator captivated me with his hospitality and kindness. Before we moved on to discussing issues related to the exhibition, we raised many topics. In an interview attended by the artist's wife, Maja and the authors of this publication, Dr. Agnieszka Kuczyńska and Dr. Krzysztof Cichoń, Zbigniew Makowski made himself known as an expert on many cultures, a lover of poetry, an all-round artist and an extremely nice person. I left the artist's apartment, being under his charm, under which I remain to this day.

Agnieszka Kuczyńska and Krzysztof Cichonia's conversation with Zbigniew Makowski allows us to learn many secrets of the master's creative path and work. An artist who took part in exhibitions and meetings that determined the face of Polish art of the 1950s and 1960s. The artist, who was given, during his several-month stay in Paris in 1962, to come into contact with André Breton and artists associated with surrealism and the international Phases group and participate in several exhibitions of this group. An artist who, in addition to painting, was engaged in poetry. 

Zbigniew Makowski presented his works at dozens of individual exhibitions in Poland and abroad, he represented Polish art at many prestigious international exhibitions. His works are in the collections of the most important museums in Poland and around the world. 

In recent years, Zbigniew Makowski has relatively rarely presented his works in public. Therefore, I am very pleased to invite everyone to visit the exhibition in Atlas Sztuki and to read this publication. The publication is the result of the artist's creative meeting with Agnieszka Kuczyńska and Krzysztof Cichoń, whose fate gave the happiness of friendship with the great creator and man. 

In conclusion, I would like to express my warm thanks to the artist's wife, Mai, without whose kind help the exhibition in Atlas Sztuki and the book accompanying the exhibition could not have existed.