From catalogue of an exhibition at the Glaeria EL Art House in Elbląg

Universal Artist, Universal Talent!

When I met him, he was a tall, handsome student of the Academy of Fine Arts. His voice, silky in timbre, remains unclassifiable to this day. Perhaps a bass, perhaps a baritone.     I am sure that the quality of his voice - which he shaped into something enduring, consistently perfecting his vocal artistry - was leading him towards a career in the opera, though there was no doubt that his visual imagination, his sensitivity for sculpture, painting and tapestry making, was the foundation for his musical identity. Thus Torreador, Motherhood, Orchestra - works closely linked to music, a domain which Tomasz Szumiński, for the second half of his life, made into a secondary interest. This talented singer of songs and operatic arias did not remain in the singing profession permanently. He devoted himself to a set of different creative passions: painting, sculpture, tapestry making. What remains is a permanent oeuvre: the confession of an abundantly and universally gifted artistic soul. As a man, there is a certain machismo about him which dominates over womanly influence, although he loves his family - in the old, noble way, that which derives from the manor households of yore. This in turn is the source of his love for, and exceptional ability to interpret, the songs of Stanisław Moniuszko and the operatic arias of national tradition. Today he is a mature, complete human being, an artist who embraces the arts in full through an artistic wisdom he gained on his own based on romantic inspiration.     The home which Tomasz Szumiński has created - known as the Regnerówka - is a family estate. It is a dream place for engaging in all manner of artistic activities, a customized 'creative workshop'. Amid the unfettered surroundings of vast fields stands a manor house, a number of horses in the adjoining paddock. Inside the palace, a studio for vocal and musical exercises; alongside it, an expansive carriage-house filled with sculptures and tapestries. All around, the smell of fields, spring flowers, the laughter of children and the loving, supporting eyes of a woman - his wife.     Tomasz Szumiński lives among things which motivate him to create. He is a singing sculptor and is on a path to achieving creative completeness.     I still would wish to cast him in an opera, in the role of a Polish noble: the Royal Butler in Halka or the Sword-bearer in The Haunted Manor - roles which are the quintessence of Polish opera.     I retain the hope

Maria Fołtyn

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