Władysław Malecki belonged to the most outstanding representatives of the Polish artistic colony in Munich . His work is dominated by landscapes, created either as independent compositions or combined with staffage. The Council of Storks is one of the artist’s best works. It depicts a dark landscape of forests and swamps. The sun shining on the horizon illuminates the surface of the water. A flock of graceful storks, harmoniously incorporated into the landscape stands between three massive willows. In line with the principles of ‘stimmung’ or scenes endowed with a special intimate atmosphere, the evening setting and a coherent palette of colours with a single dominant hue let the artist seamlessly combine all the elements of the composition. 19th century critics agreed that the landscape with storks was a Polish landscape. The birds , shown in their natural habitat, symbolize the constant laws of nature and the repetitive rhythm of changing seasons of the year.
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