Petras Kalpokas
Encyclopedia
Petras Kalpokas was a well known Lithuania
n painter and professor.
, in the Kovno Governorate
of the Russian Empire
(in the Biržai district of present-day Lithuania
).
From 1890 to 1895 he attended the Gymnasium of Jelgava, Latvia
. He was expelled when he drew teacher's cartoon on a stove.
In 1898 Kalpokas moved to Odessa
where he spent two years as an art student. In 1890 he received a bronze medal for his still life
painting. In 1892 the first exhibition of Kalpokas' drawings was organized in Riga
. Kalpokas continued his studies of arts in Munich
. He studied under guidance of Anton Ažbe
and Wilhelm von Debschitz. Kalpokas attended Heimann Academy and Munich University.
Since 1909 till 1920 Kalpokas traveled around Europe: Switzerland
, Hungary
, Italy
. In 1914 he attempted to organize a large one-man exhibition in Germany
, but more than 120 of his paintings were lost due to World War I
. After he returned to Lithuania
, Kalpokas began teaching. First lecturing at drawing courses, established by Justinas Vienožinskis, he later taught at Kaunas Art Institute. In 1928 Kalpokas held a large personal exhibition in Kaunas
. In 1930 he published a textbook on painting techniques and in 1945 became a professor.
. His portraits are psychological and precise, while fresco
es - decorative and dynamic. Among noted works by Kalpokas are:
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
n painter and professor.
Biography
Kalpokas was born on 31 March 1880 in the village of Miškinė, near KvetkaiKvetkai
Kvetkai is a village in Biržai district municipality, northern Lithuania. It is located about 3 km away from the border with Latvia. Nemunėlis flows through the village....
, in the Kovno Governorate
Kovno Governorate
The Kovno Governorate or Government of Kovno was a governorate of the Russian Empire. Its capital was Kovno . It was formed on 18 December 1842 by tsar Nicholas I from the western part of the Vilna Governorate, and the order was carried out on 1 July 1843. It used to be a part of Northwestern Krai...
of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
(in the Biržai district of present-day Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
).
From 1890 to 1895 he attended the Gymnasium of Jelgava, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
. He was expelled when he drew teacher's cartoon on a stove.
In 1898 Kalpokas moved to Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
where he spent two years as an art student. In 1890 he received a bronze medal for his still life
Still life
A still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which may be either natural or man-made...
painting. In 1892 the first exhibition of Kalpokas' drawings was organized in Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
. Kalpokas continued his studies of arts in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
. He studied under guidance of Anton Ažbe
Anton Ažbe
Anton Ažbe was a Slovene realist painter and teacher of painting.Ažbe, crippled since birth and orphaned at the age of 8, learned painting as an apprentice to Janez Wolf and at the Academies in Vienna and Munich. At the age of 30 Ažbe founded his own school of painting in Munich that became a...
and Wilhelm von Debschitz. Kalpokas attended Heimann Academy and Munich University.
Since 1909 till 1920 Kalpokas traveled around Europe: Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. In 1914 he attempted to organize a large one-man exhibition in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, but more than 120 of his paintings were lost due to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. After he returned to Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Kalpokas began teaching. First lecturing at drawing courses, established by Justinas Vienožinskis, he later taught at Kaunas Art Institute. In 1928 Kalpokas held a large personal exhibition in Kaunas
Kaunas
Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...
. In 1930 he published a textbook on painting techniques and in 1945 became a professor.
Works
Most of Kalpokas' works are landscapes and portraits, but he experimented with diverse genres (still life, thematic composition, theatrical scenery, monumental painting) and techniques (oil, watercolor, tempera, fresco). Landscapes of Kalpokas are lyric. Some of them are realistic, others have features of impressionismImpressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s...
. His portraits are psychological and precise, while fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
es - decorative and dynamic. Among noted works by Kalpokas are:
- The Golden Birch Tree (1907)
- Rivulet in Spring (1907)
- Sylvan way (1912)
- The landscape of Switzerland (1915)
- Wind from the Sea (1942)
- Portrait of Jurgis Šlapelis (1924)
- Portrait of Jonas JablonskisJonas JablonskisJonas Jablonskis was a distinguished Lithuanian linguist and one of the founders of the standard Lithuanian language...
(1938) - Portrait of Salomeja NerisSalomeja NerisSalomėja Nėris - Lithuanian poetess.- Biography :Nėris was born in Kiršai, in the current district of Vilkaviškis. She graduated from the University of Lithuania where she studied Lithuanian and German language and literature.After that she was a teacher in Lazdijai, Kaunas, and Panevėžys...
(1945) - Amasone (1933)
- Forest and Cloud (1926)