Wojciech Gerson

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Wojciech Gerson (1831-1901) was a Polish painter and professor. Born in Warsaw, Gerson enrolled at the Warsaw Fine Arts Academy and graduated with honorable mention and a scholarship to St. Petersburg Academy of Arts where he studied historical painting under A. T. Markov. He graduated from St. Petersburg with a silver medal and returned to Warsaw. He left for Paris in 1850 and studied under Leon Cogniet. He travelled back to Warsaw in 1858, where he would live for the rest of his life. Gerson began to teach art in his own workshop in 1865. He trained many future Polish artists such as Józef Chełmoński, Leon Wyczółkowski, Władysław Podkowiński, and Józef Pankiewicz. He was made a professor for the St. Petersburg Fine Arts Academy in 1878. Gerson also worked as an architect and art critic. He is known for his paintings of patriotism, country life, and mountain landscapes. Gerson died in Warsaw at the age of 70.