User talk:Ben Falat

Kazimierz (Togo) Falat, son of [Julian Falat] [1904-81] continued to paint in a style very similar to his father.

As a pacifist conscripted into the [Wehrmacht] for special duties as a cartographer he maintained that his tools were pencil and brush, and he even 'threw away' his issued rifle on at least four occasions. He was not present when the Soviets overran Poland and his home and paintings were looted. He in the meantime was taken prisoner by the Americans in Italy, later transferring to the Polish Corps of the British Army.

After the 2nd World War he settled in England and for a time worked as a figurine-painter for the pottery company [Royal Doulton] in [Staffordshire]. He disliked the lack of expression that was allowed, painting to the strictest company rules and yearned for greater freedom. Most of his works in [England], always watercolour and often on industrial cardboard, showed a yearning for his homeland.

He married Erika Hermine von der Heyde (a German au-pair in [England]) in 1952 and had a son Benvenuto Andreas (named after [Cellini], mentioned on the first page of Julian Falat's autobiography) in 1953, and a daughter Ingrid in 1957. He moved to [London] in search for work in 1960.

He died in [London] in December 1981 and his wife carried the urn with his ashes to [Bystra] in Poland to reside in the tomb of Julian.

Ben Falat 20:50, 27 March 2007 (UTC)