Léopold Franz Kowalski Woman Reclining On Her Back, Charcoal, Monogrammed,circa 1900, Framed

Born in Paris on December 8, 1856, to parents of Polish origin, Léopold Franz (or Léopold-François) Kowalski trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, notably in the studio of Henri Lehmann, then at the Académie Julian, and quickly became a regular exhibitor at the Salon des Artistes Français from 1881. He was admitted as a member of the Salon des Artistes Français in the early 1880s and received several awards, including a bronze medal at the end of the 19th century, which cemented his official recognition.

From 1912, he left Paris to settle in the Eure region, where he continued to paint until his death, focusing on portraits of his wife and daughter as well as Norman and Breton landscapes. His work, however, is dominated by Female figures: portraits, interior scenes, reading scenes, studies of drapery and movement, of which our drawing is an excellent example.