The Polish graphic artist and cartoonist Henryk Chmielewski died at the age of 97. The popular Papcio Chmiel was the creator of one of the most famous Polish comic books – Tytus, Romek and A’Tomek .
Henryk Jerzy Chmielewski was born on June 7, 1923 in Warsaw. During World War II, he was a soldier of the Home Army and took part in the Warsaw Uprising. After the war, from August 1947, he worked as a graphic designer, first in Świat Przygód , and then in Świat Młodych . In the 1950s, he graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw.
The famous “Papcio Chmiel” started by working on the continuation of the comic book Sergeant King from the royal cavalry . Then he created such titles as Half-year of a absentee or Witek sprytek . His most famous work, however, remains the series Tytus, Romek and A’Tomek , the first part of which was released on October 22, 1957. So far, 31 albums called “books” and 8 collective books have been published. “The Golden Book of Adventures”, as well as albums containing reprints from “Świat Młodych” and other newspapers, “Księga TVP” and collector’s issues. The last issue appeared in September 2019 and was entitled Tytus, Romek and A’Tomek on the silk route from Papcio Chmiel’s imagination drawn. Mr. Chmielewski’s work was also screened and transferred to computer screens.
“Papcio Chmiel” has been awarded many times for his work. He received, among others The Silver Cross of Merit, the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta, the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture Gloria Artis, the Medal of the Centenary of Regained Independence, the Order of the Smile or the Award “Meritorious for Polish Comics”.
Henryk Chmielewski died on the night of January 21-22, 2021. Information about his death was provided by Piotr Kasiński – co-organizer of the International Festival of Comics and Games in Łódź.