The Right Knee
Painting
ID:
1765
Number in cycle:
58
Ending number:
259
Date:
June 1973
Medium:
acrylic; canvas;oil
Dimensions:
146 cm x 114 cm
Description:
This painting shows two worlds walled off from each other. Far away a beautiful, better world, blue sky. Venice (the San Giorgio Maggiore church), bliss and happiness can be seen. And here we have our socialist hell where men fight because they have nothing else to do. When I was a teenager I trained boxing and I was taught that a knee blow is absolutely forbidden - a banned, boorish blow. It symbolises the thoughtless cruelty of this little world. Moving your knee is really dense. I left the green primer at this spot. Around there's paint. In fact I wanted it to be a very aesthetic painting. Graphic, flat and cleanly painted.
When I was 17 I trained boxing in the House of the Polish Word in Warsaw and, as I'm left-handed, I was very good. At first they used to give me small boys whom I shattered at once. So the trainer sent better and older guys to me and, finally, he sent a 20 year old to me. And the 20 year old gave me a black eye. Next day was school day. When I appeared, the biology teacher asked what had happened to me. I told her that I trained boxing and she started yelling: "Impossible, such a pretty boy, such a straight nose, such a harmonious face and boxing?! Want to be beaten up? You will have ups and downs on your forehead craggy. They will cut your nose gristle out. You will be ugly. With such a face you should rather become an actor. There'll only be dummy fighting, you will always look nice and pretty". I haven't attended another boxing lesson ever since. I was too scared.
(E.D.)
Owner type:
private
Tags:
fight;man;violence
