Pranciskus Smuglevicius

Smuglevičius, Pranciškus 

(in Polish, Franciszek Smuglewicz). Born Oct. 6, 1745, in Warsaw; died Sep. 6 (18), 1807, in Vilnius. Lithuanian painter. Founder of the Lithuanian school of painting.

Smuglevičius studied under his father (the painter Lukošius Smuglevičius), S. Czechowicz, and A. Maron (1763–64). In 1765 he entered the Rome Academy of Fine Arts. He worked in Rome for a period and later settled in Warsaw, where he worked from 1784 to 1797. He then moved to Vilnius and became head of the department of painting and drawing of the University of Vilnius in 1797.

Smuglevičius was primarily a painter of historical scenes and portraits. He worked in the classical style; however, his paintings are marked by occasional baroque elements. His works in the Art Museum of the Lithuanian SSR in Vilnius include Lithuanian Peasants, The Death of Virginija, and the watercolor series Architectural Views of Old Vilnius (1785). Other noteworthy works are Portrait of the Prozor Family (1789, National Museum, Warsaw) and Kościuszko’s Oath (1797, National Museum, Poznań). Smuglevičius executed the murals in Smuglevičius Hall of the University of Vilnius, collaborating with his brother, A. Smuglevičius.

REFERENCE

Drėma, V. Pranciškus Smuglevičius. Vilnius, 1973.