BY BOB KRASNER | Although other artists were in the running, Janusz Gilewicz was the natural choice to paint a mural commemorating the beginning of Polish statehood, in a neighborhood rich with Polish history.
A former resident of Poland until age 24 and a longtime East Villager and Lower East Sider, Gilewicz has to his credit the “world’s largest three-dimensional mural,” which he created with the help of 500 volunteers at 379 Madison St. in 2013.
The new mural, on the side of St. Stanislaus the Bishop and Martyr Church, at 104 St. Mark’s Place, however, is a simpler affair. Commissioned by the Polish Cultural Institute, it has four main elements: “POLSKA,” the country’s name in Polish; a fish, an ancient symbol of Christianity; the Polish flag; and the number 966, the year Poland’s first Christian leader, Duke Mieszko I, was baptized.
At the upper right, Gilewiicz noted, “You see the pages of history turning.”
The artist previously lived two doors down from the church.
“Polish people are an integral part of this city and culture,” he said, though adding, “There are hardly any left here anymore. It’s too commercial and too expensive.”
The mural was painted in one week on the 150-year-old church’s side.
“It will go on further than my life,” he said of the artwork. “It will be here when I am gone.”
The finished mural was unveiled Sun., April 17.
