Heliograms by Nicolas Grospierre are displayed at a temporary exhibition in the Salle de Solomon at the Palace on the Isle. Derived from the power of light, colour and matter, the works fill in the blanks left by Marcello Bacciarelli’s paintings destroyed during World War II.
The large-scale paintings in the Salle de Solomon were made by Marcello Bacciarelli between 1788 and 1793 as part of the iconographic campaign of King Stanisław August. On the walls and vault, the court painter depicted scenes from the story of the biblical King Solomon. It is after him that the majestic interior has been named.
The depictions of the life of the ruler from the Old Testament, famous for his wisdom, had a symbolic dimension – they were a manifesto of royal reform and aspirations. As was believed at the time, a good ruler, like Solomon, should be guided in his rule not only by the virtue of wisdom and justice stemming from it, but also by the welfare of the state and the maintenance of peace. Stanisław August, who considered the biblical ruler as a model, wished to achieve similar goals. The depiction of the Temple of Jerusalem, to which Solomon is heading with a procession carrying the Ark, symbolised the Constitution of 3 May – the greatest achievement of Stanisław August reign. Marcello Bacciarelli’s paintings also conveyed a bitter self-reflection on the fate of the reform and the political situation on the eve of the last partition of Poland.
Both the plafond and the wall paintings in the Salle de Solomon were completely destroyed in the fire set by the Germans in the Palace on the Isle when leaving the Royal Łazienki in 1944. Beginning from 1960s, when the monument restored from wartime damage was opened to the public, the two large gilded frames, the plafond and the fields of facets remained empty.
Heliograms in the Salle de Solomon
Following numerous debates among experts, among others in the fields of art history and conservation, devoted to the reconstruction of the painting decorations in the Salle de Solomon, the Royal Łazienki Museum decided to invite contemporary artists to attempt to discover anew the artistic and ideological visions of Stanisław August.
The project has been initiated by works of Nicolas Grospierre. The heliograms, changing under the influence of the sun and filling the empty spaces left by Marcello Bacciarelli’s paintings damaged by fire, reflect as the artist emphasises “both presence and absence, permanence and impermanence (...), they constitute a bridge between the physical and the metaphysical, between what we see and what remains beyond the limits of our perception”.
They are works full of symbolism designed on a number of dimensions, starting with the power of the sun, which created patterns on them when they were exposed to sunlight in the Łazienki gardens. The heliograms are also the result of a dialogue between numerous communities, both around and within the Museum. They represent a combination of the commitment of many people with the brilliant visions of the artist.
Opening hours, admission to the exhibition
The heliograms in the Salle the Salomon can be seen from Tuesday to Wednesday from 10.00 to 17.00, on Thursday and Friday from 10.00 to 18.00, on Saturday from 12.00-20.00, and on Sunday from 10.00 to 16.00. From October the exhibition is open from Tuesday to Wednesday from 09.00 to 16.00, from Thursday to Saturday from 10.00 to 18.00, and on Sunday from 10.00 to 16.00. Last entry is 30 minutes before the exhibition closes. Admission: with the passes to the Royal Łazienki Museum facilities (which include a visit to the Palace on the Isle – check the prices of the passes); members of the Club of Friends of the Royal Łazienki Museum enter free of charge; on Friday free visits.
Nicolas Grospierre (born in 1975) – photographer of architecture, artist using photography as a creative tool. He grew up in France and has lived in Poland since 1999. Before taking up photography, he studied political science and sociology in Paris and London. As a photographer, he focuses on documentary projects; he is also interested in conceptual issues. In his documentary works, he often undertakes the theme of collective memory and hopes associated with modernist architecture when the utopias that accompanied it have lost their strength and meaning. In his conceptual works, he builds a situation of play with the audience, into which it is drawn by means of attractive, even sensual images and installations. He was awarded the Golden Lion at the 11th Venice Biennale of Architecture in 2008 for the exhibition ‘Hotel Polonia. Buildings Life After Life’ (together with Kobas Laksa). He is the winner of the Paszport Polityki award (2012). His photographic publications include ‘Modern Forms. A Subjective Atlas of 20th Century Architecture’ (2016) and ‘Modern Spaces. A Subjective Atlas of 20th Century Interiors’ (2018), both published by Prestel Publishing, London. He presented his work at various exhibitions, such as: ‘Lapis Mundi’, Museum of the Earth, Warsaw, 2022; ‘Erlking’, Starmach Gallery, Kraków, 2022; ‘LCAXN’, Le Corbusier Foundation, Paris, 2021; ‘Subjective Atlas of Modernist Architecture’, Fort Institute of Photography, Warsaw, 2019; ‘The Best Possible City’, Architektur Galerie, Munich, 2018; ‘The City That Doesn’t Exist’, Pereswietow Galeria Pereulok, Moscow, 2018; ‘Todo Palidece ante el Libro’, Centro de Arte Alcobendas, Madrid, 2017; ‘Heliosophia’, Galeria Alarcon Criado, Seville, 2017; ‘Modern Forms’, Architectural Association, London, 2016; ‘Glass in the Eye’, BWA Warsaw, 2014; ‘Oval Cabinets’, State Art Gallery, Sopot, 2013; ‘The City That Doesn’t Exist’, Bunkier Sztuki Gallery of Contemporary Art. Kraków, 2012; ‘One Thousand Doors, No Exit’, Graham Foundation, Chicago, 2011.
