“Given its history, Kordegarda is an iconic place on the map of Warsaw. It is not just a gallery which holds exhibitions promoting Polish art and bringing back our heritage, but also a place of concerts, workshops, and meetings with interesting people. Resuming the activity of our gallery, we wanted to present another important and beautiful work of art, which returned to Poland thanks to the engagement and efforts of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. This is NCC’s fourth exhibition in the “Lost and Recovered” series. And definitely not the last one,” says dr hab. Rafał Wiśniewski (PhD, doctor habilitatus), Professor at the Cardinal Wyszyński University in Warsaw, director of the National Centre for Culture.The first recovered cultural piece of art presented by the NCC as part of the Lost and Recovered series at the Kordegarda Gallery was Francesco Lazzaro Guardi’s painting entitled Palace Steps (1770s, oil painting). Then, in 2016, Kordegarda put on display A Negress by Anna Bilińska-Bohdanowicz (1884, oil on canvas), as well as three paintings by Aleksander Gierymski: A Jewess with Oranges (1880-1881, oil on canvas), Bust of a Man in Renaissance Dress (1882, oil on mahogany), and A Boy Carrying a Sheaf (ca. 1895, oil on canvas).This year’s exhibition at Kordegarda presents the exceptional beauty of the bust of Diana sculpted by Jean-Antoine Houdon, which enraptured king Stanislaus Augustus Poniatowski – philosopher, promoter of progressive ideas, and admirer of female beauty. Bust of Diana became a jewel in his collection of sculpture. It was also one of the most expensive sculptures purchased by the king. The court painter, Marcello Bacciarelli, noted in his inventory in 1795 that it constituted part of the Royal Collection of Sculpture exhibited at the Palace on the Isle.In 1940, the sculpture was looted and taken to the headquarters of Governor-General Hans Frank along with 56 paintings from the National Museum in Warsaw. Since then, its location remained a secret. 70 years after its disappearance, a private collector put it up for auction at a Vienna auction house. When information about this reached Poland, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage requested that the work should be returned. The Polish Embassy in Vienna became involved in the case. An agreement was reached and the previous owner decided to return Diana to the Republic of Poland.The minimalist exhibition at Kordegarda builds its narrative around the bust of Diana and helps visitors contemplate the piece, which perfectly matches the neo-classical architecture of the gallery. The sculpture is accompanied by other depictions of Diana coming from Polish collections. The curators’ idea was to broaden the interpretive perspective – a look at the figure of the goddess through the eyes of 18th-century intellectuals. Laid flat, the prints from Polish collections do not distract the visitor. They help them enter the world of meanings of the figure of Diana in culture, both ancient and that of the Enlightenment period, but they do not disturb the glance directed towards the distinctive twist of the goddess’ neck, positioned as if she was listening out for something. The solid cubes on which the prints accompanying the sculpture are displayed constitute an element of a contemporary garden that moves the imagination and evokes a sense of nostalgia, combining the past with the present.The exhibition is also a pretext to examine the borderline between beauty and wildness, brutality and eroticism. It provides an opportunity to learn more about the legacy of antiquity and its modern interpretation. The circumstances of the creation of the sculpture and the story of how the last king of Poland acquired it cast light on the circulation of works of art at the time and the active presence of Poland’s elite in the process. Following the tracks of the goddess of the moon across various media, ages, and geographical distances, visitors have the chance to participate in a multidimensional journey of images, which will reveal the complex interrelationships between power, the senses, and prestige.Jean-Antoine Houdon was an outstanding 18th-century French sculptor. His sculpted busts of his contemporaries, well-known figures of the Enlightenment era: politicians, philosophers, scientists, and aristocrats, graced a number of aristocratic and royal salons. He was born in 1741 in Versailles. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture (Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture) in 1761, he went to Rome, where he continued studies in antique sculpture. After a 10-year stay in the Eternal City, he returned to Paris for good, quickly gaining recognition and popularity. He created numerous allegorical sculptures referring to mythology, as well as portraits. The latter not only accurately depicted the model, but also perfectly captured their character. His life-size sculpture of Diana the Huntress enjoyed immense popularity among his contemporaries. They commissioned its copies in marble, bronze, and plaster. The marble versions were usually selected by European rulers, including the French court.Curators: dr Anna Rudek-Śmiechowska (PhD), Agnieszka Bebłowska Bednarkiewicz; National Centre for CultureHistorical consultation: Aleksander Musiał, Princeton UniversityOrganisers: National Centre for Culture, Ministry of Culture and National Heritage – Department  of Cultural Heritage Abroad and Wartime LossesPartners: Royal Łazienki Museum in WarsawItems from the collections of: Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, Royal Łazienki Museum, National Library in Warsaw, Print Room of the University of Warsaw Library, National Museum in Warsaw