The baroque also saw a flourishing of secular works in Wielkopolska. The Radomicki Palace in Konarzewo (Poznań County), which dates from the late 17th century, is one of the best preserved aristocratic manors in Wielkopolska.
The late baroque Sułkowski Hunting Palace in Włoszakowice (Leszno County), built in 1749-1751, is distinguished by its highly attractive architectural form. The palace is situated on an artificial island and has a triangular plan with concave corners.
Freemasonry has an indirect connection with the rococo palace in Ciążeń (Słupca County), which was probably designed for the Poznań bishops by Warsaw architects Teodor Czartoryski and, after his death, Ignacy Raczyński, both of whom were from Jakub Fontana’s circle.
Mycielski Palace in Pępowo (Gostyń County) is a late-baroque palace-park complex.
The baroque Szołdrski palace in Czempiń was erected 1729-1739. The cartouche over the entrance to the palace announces its completion date.
Rydzyna is known as the “pearl of the Polish baroque” on account of having preserved one of the very few baroque urban settlements in Europe where the city was integrated with the aristocratic manor.
Central Rydzyna consists of a small marketplace with baroque and neo-baroque townhouses, a baroque town hall and a sculpture of the Trinity. The baroque St. Stanisław (Stanislaus) Church is nearby. The castle, which lies on the eastern boundary of the city, is a baroque mansion, complete with a palace park and moats, designed by Royal Architect Józef Belotti.
Leszno had its heyday in the first half of the 17th century. Development was brought to a halt by the Swedish Deluge and the Second Northern War. The subsequent rebuilding of the Leszno town hall with the assistance of Leszno builder Marcin Woyda in 1660 and again (likely by Pompeo Ferrari) in 1707-1709 was a consequence of these events.
Parks and gardens were important components of baroque palaces.
Entre cour et jardin was a layout, developed in France, that became popular during the 2nd half of the 17th century. The courtyard was placed in front of the palace and the garden at the rear, with the whole aligned along a composition axis. Posadowo’s (Nowy Tomyśl County) main attraction is its mid-18th century French park. This is divided into four terraces that slope northward for 350 m and are adorned with figures of sphinxes, flowerpots and stone benches. The lowest terrace is created by a pond through which a canal with small stone bridges flows. One particularly interesting feature of the park are its 250-year-old yew trees cut into geometric shapes.
Baroque decorative sculpture was closely tied in with architecture. Buildings were complemented with monumental columns, sculptures and a variety of ornaments during this period. Stucco was the main material, although sandstone, marble and bronze were used as well.
Baroque sculptures are not just found in and around churches but in marketplaces, squares and other public places as well. The 1724 statue of St. John of Nepomuk in the Old Town Marketplace in Poznań is one of the oldest monuments in Wielkopolska. A “plague monument” of the kind popular in Hapsburg countries stands in the middle of the Rydzyna marketplace as a reminder of an epidemic of black death in 1709.
Coffin portraits are unique to the Polish baroque. These spread throughout the Commonwealth from their birthplace in Wielkopolska.
The coffin portrait of the deceased, usually a copy of a portrait made when he or she was still alive, was placed on the head of the catafalque (castrum doloris). This image most often only portrayed the face, was hexagonal in shape and adjusted to fit on the front of the coffin. The National Museum in Poznań, the Regional Museum in Leszno, the Gniezno Archdiocesan Museum and the Międzyrzecz Museum all have substantial coffin portrait collections.
Baroque painting, as was probably the case with that of previous periods, was a vehicle for extolling God and praising powerful families. Sepulchral, commemorative and coffin portraits were the most common after paintings of religious subjects.
The compositions of Silesian painter Georg Wilhelm Neunhertz completed the cupolas of the churches in Ląd and Gostyń as well as the Rydzyna palace ballroom ceiling. The Bernardine Monk Walenty Żebrowski worked in Kalisz and Wschowa. Adam Swach, a Franciscan from Poznań, produced the paintings in the Franciscan Church as well as those of Jesus in Poznań, Ląd, Pyzdry, Owińska and Wełna. Szymon Czechowicz from Cracow is responsible for the painting of the Resurrection of Piotrowin in the high altar of the Poznań parish church as well as the paintings in the altars of the Leszno parish church and the churches in Obra and Owińska.