Jan Sawka (December 10, 1946 – August 9, 2012) was a Polish-born American artist and architect. Early life In 1946, Sawka was born to an architect father and linguist mother, Jan and Maria Sawka, in the Silesian city of Zabrze. His father was imprisoned by the government of Communist Poland shortly after his birth. His mother was not allowed to pursue her career, but worked privately as a tutor. Sawka completed two master's degrees: in painting and print-making from the Wrocław Fine Arts Academy and in Architectural Engineering from the Institute of Technology in Wrocław. By his late 20s, Sawka was a star of the famed Polish Poster School and a leading artist of the counter-culture. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, he became known in Poland for the posters and stage sets that he designed for avant-garde theater groups. He largely was able to avoid trouble with censors until his work begin to be noticed by foreign art critics, who commented on the hidden anti-authoritarian elements in his art. His oppositionist activities led to his exile from Poland in 1976. When he immigrated to New York in 1977, he had no money and he was unheard of in the United States. Sawka's art was widely praised by the dissidents against Communist Poland. In 1981, when martial law was imposed in Poland, the AFL-CIO sponsored a bipartisan fundraiser that sold Sawka's Solidarity poster in the millions to provide immediate support to the besieged Solidarity movement. New York City After 1977, he resided in New York, becoming part of the American cultural mainstream. Early in his time in the United States, Sawka created editorial drawings for the New York Times, while developing a multi-faceted career that encompassed printmaking, painting, sculpture, and theater design. Numerous galleries have exhibited his paintings and prints, and he designed for such theaters as the Harold Clurman, Jean Cocteau Repertory and Samuel Beckett Theater. His awards have included the 1975 Oscar de la Peinture in Cagnes-sur-Mer, France for painting and the Gold Medal at the 1978 Warsaw Poster Biennial. In 1985, Sawka opened a series of one-man art exhibitions in New York City. The size and scope were unusual for an artist, and the success he had achieved in the eight years since his arrival from Poland was also unusual. Multimedia projects In 1989, Sawka designed a 10-story tall set for The Grateful Dead's 25th Anniversary