Roman Opałka

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Roman Opałka (1931–2011)

Painter of time – a man who painted his own passing.

Life project: From 1965, he painted numbers – starting from 1 and eventually reaching over 5 million. Each canvas (called a “detail”) was a continuation of the previous one. At the same time, he took a photo of himself and recorded himself saying the numbers.
Technique: White paint on a gray background that gradually lightened. He aimed to achieve “white on white” – symbolizing the erasure of the trace of existence.
Life: He lived in France and died in Venice. His life was one big performance – painting as a testimony of existence.
Trivia: He was obsessively consistent. He refused to paint anything else. He lived by strict discipline – seeking transcendence in painting.
Contemporary meaning: Opałka is the patron of “slow art” and reflection on time. For people living in data chaos, his work reminds them of continuity and the meaning of ritual.

Biography

Roman Opałka was a Polish-French conceptual artist known primarily for his lifelong project of painting numbers from one to infinity on canvases, exploring themes of time, existence, and mortality. Beginning in 1965, Opałka meticulously painted tiny white numerals on increasingly lighter grey and eventually white backgrounds. His work involved a disciplined serial practice combining painting, photography, and audio recordings, representing a unique meditation on the passage of time and human life.

Early Life and Education

Born in 1931 in Abbeville-Saint-Lucien, France to Polish parents, Opałka moved to Poland in 1946. He studied lithography before enrolling at the School of Art and Design in Łódź, later earning a degree from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw.

The 1965 Number Painting Project

Starting in 1965 in Warsaw, Opałka began his signature project painting sequential numbers from 1 towards infinity on canvases of fixed size. Each canvas was titled "1965/1–∞". The background began black, turned grey in 1968, and then was lightened by 1% white with each subsequent canvas to eventually achieve 'white on white' painting.

Artistic Methods and Media

In addition to painting, Opałka recorded himself verbally counting the numbers and took passport-style photographs of himself after every session, integrating multimedia elements to document his process and passage of time.

Exhibitions and Recognition

Opałka exhibited widely internationally, including Documenta, São Paulo Bienal, Venice Biennale, and major galleries in Paris, New York, and Venice. He received multiple awards including the Goslarer Kaiserring, France's Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, and Poland's Gloria Artis Medal and Order of Polonia Restituta.

Nationality

Polish, French

Themes

Conceptual art, Time, Numbers, Infinity, Serial art, Visual perception, Life and mortality

Major Awards

1991
National Prize of Painting, France

Awarded for outstanding achievement in painting at the national level.
1993
Goslarer Kaiserring, Germany

Prestigious German art critics' award acknowledging significant contributions to contemporary art.
2009
Commander in the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France

Honorific order recognizing significant contributions to the arts and literature.
2009
Gold Medal of the Cultural Merit 'Gloria Artis', Poland

High distinction in Poland for cultural contributions.