About

Zofia Siek-Mlicka

I am a professionally trained conservator-restorer and painter, and a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. I specialise in the conservation of easel paintings and in making faithful, commissioned copies of paintings. Every work that comes into my studio is treated with individual attention and responsibility, in line with current standards and the ethics of the conservation profession.

I studied at the Faculty of Conservation and Restoration of Works of Art of the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków, where I gained a solid technological and historical grounding. I believe that neither good conservation nor a copy of real value is possible without a deep understanding of a work's structure, construction and historical context.

I run a fully equipped conservation studio, which allows me to carry out comprehensive treatments, including work on paintings on canvas and on panel. In my practice I combine a rigorous conservation approach with the craft of painting — I work in oils, tempera and pastel. For me, copying and conservation are a form of dialogue with the past — a way of restoring harmony and permanence to works of art.

Education and career

From 2000 to 2005 I studied painting conservation at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków (Master of Arts degree in the studio of Prof. Marta Lempart-Geratowska). Since 2010 I have been running my own conservation and art studio.

Painting remains my passion: I take part in open-air painting workshops and exhibitions, and my works have been shown at more than 15 group exhibitions. Between 2017 and 2020 I worked with the Regional Museum in Chrzanów as a conservator and co-created cultural and artistic projects. Since 2020, together with my family, I have been organising the “Open Days of the Siek Family Art Studios”, where I present my studio and the creative work of the whole family.

In my own painting I explore fleeting moments and the mood of an instant. I come from a family in which art has always mattered — my parents, both sculptors, welcomed many artists into their home, which has never stopped inspiring me. In easel painting, across different techniques, I keep searching for my own language of expression, drawing also on the experience gained through conservation work.

Publication