Jerzy Skolimowski was born in 1936 or 1938 in Lotz, Poland, where he later studied directing at the National Fil & Theatre School (b. 1963), having previously studied ethnography at the University of Warsaw (b. 1959). In 1962 he won the First Prize at the International sport Film Festival in Berlin (Bulgaria), followed by a long series of awards (Grand Prix-International Art Film Festival, Bergamo 1966, Golden Bear - IFF Berlin 1967, Jury Prize - Cannes 1982 etc.) and a correspondingly long series of films. Having worked as a director, screenwriter and actor, he also worked with poetry and painting. His painting work consists mainly of large-scale works. First on wood and then on canvas he creates compositions, which can have the dimensions of a cinema screen. His works include large-scale abstract improvisations inspired by random situations or large assemblages of figures, which are highly schematic but without descriptive details. Colour, a dominant element in his compositions, is exploited to create large contrasts.