Henryk Siemiradzki was a Polish painter, a representative of academicism in European painting. In 1871, he graduated from the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg and received a six-year scholarship. Siemiradzki's works enjoyed recognition throughout Europe. As an academic he painted historical, religious and mythological scenes. He was awarded numerous prizes and medals for his work, including the French Legion of Honour and the Italian Order Corona d'Italia. He painted curtains for the theatres in Cracow (1896) and Lviv (1900). Moreover, he also painted landscapes, in which he paid special attention to light effects.