Adolphe Milich (Tishne 1884 - Paris 1964)
Adolphe Milich was a Franco-Polish painter and draughtsman of the École de Paris. He was born in Tishne in 1884. From the age of 13, he was a letter painter. After his father's bankruptcy, he moved to Lodz to try to support his family financially, where he became a teacher and discovered the art world. From 1902 to 1904, Milich studied at the Beaux-Arts in Warsaw and Munich, taking classes with the painter Frantz Von Stuck. He then met Pascin. The painter then travelled to Italy (Rome, Florence and Venice), where he made a living selling drawings to other artists who signed them. Recalled to Warsaw for military service, he was discharged and moved to Paris in 1909. He frequented Castelucho's studio. In 1910, the artist went to Madrid, and the following year returned to Rome. In 1915, he moved to Lugano in Switzerland. Returning to Paris in 1920, he settled in the Montparnasse district. He made regular visits to Sanary until 1927, then to La Ciotat in 1931. When war broke out, Milich went to Saint-Tropez, then in 1942 to Switzerland. At the end of the war, he returned to Paris. In 1951, he travelled to Israel. He died in Paris in 1964.
Milich studied the great masters, whose technique he admired. The artist was also a collector, particularly revering Degas and the sculptors Charles Despiau and Jacques Loutchansky. In his early years, he produced many social portraits, but his favorite subject was the Mediterranean landscape. Once in Montparnasse, he adopted a more expressionist style, punctuated by bright colors.
Milich took part in the 1937 Paris International Exhibition, where he was awarded the bronze medal. The Musée du Jeu de Paume acquired the artist's works in 1934. Today, his works are kept in several French museums and in the Milich Museum in Lugano.