Black Woman
Anna Bilińska-Bohdanowicz · 1884
Why it's great
A woman with dignity and calm looks out at us, wearing a white head covering and a draped shawl. Bilińska, a Polish painter who trained in Paris, painted this in 1884. It was a portrait that treated its sitter with respect, at a time when that was uncommon. It's a striking example of 19th-century portrait painting.
Where to see it
📍 National Museum in WarsawWarsaw, Poland
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Three places to look for a print of this painting, from budget to museum-grade:
These links open search results on each shop's own website; we don't sell anything or earn a commission, and print quality varies by seller. Ask a grown-up before you buy anything.
Anna Bilińska-Bohdanowicz was born in Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empire, to a Polish family and studied in Saint Petersburg, Munich and Paris. She lived in Warsaw and was one of the first Polish women to win international acclaim as a painter. She painted portraits and scenes in a modern style. She died young, in 1893, at age 39.
