| dc.description.abstract | In the 19th century, art was perceived as a source of values: cognitive, educational, and educative. This is how
one should look at the famous painting by Jan Matejko - “Jan Kochanowski over Urszulka’s Dead Body”, though not
the original, but a copy to be found in one of his homes - converted into a museum in Koryznówka near Wiśnicz. It
is one of the most fascinating artistic images of father’s love to his child, and an important component of what
can be described as the Polish national identity.
Death of a child was rarely the leading motif in the Polish culture. Kochanowski’s Laments {Treny), as the
archetype of a father’s reaction to the death of the loved child, constitute an exceptional example of parental
love recorded in literature. Emphasizing the topical novelty of Kochanowski’s Laments, we should note the same
with regard to Matejko’s painting. As we know, the idea came from Kochanowski. His work left an indelible
impression on Matejko.
The subject matter of Matejko’s painting implies its educational significance. It indicates that in the second
half of the 19th century, purely humane matters started to permeate art, including those showing the performance
of parental roles. Matejko’s painting demonstrates the need to mature to responsible parenthood, which should be a
subject of consideration at school. However, Matejko’s painting is not used at school. The fact that the work “Jan
Kochanowski over Urszulka’s Dead Body” is absent, is not the result of a lack of appreciation for the subject, but
rather of the absence of the original itself, and the authors of handbooks as well as the teachers themselves have
problems finding a copy of it. | en_EN |
