He was born in a mining family in Giszowiec. At the age of 16 he started working at the "Jerzy" power plant at the Giesche mine and already painted his first picture. In a short time he took up work as a miner in the mine "Giesche", where he worked with Ewald Gawlik. Retired in 1986. In his work he refers to mining myths and culture of the ancient East. It mainly depicts female acts on the background of Nikiszowiec, houses from the so-called. "Big plate", allotment gardens, miners and their dwellings. He achieved world renown. His works were presented at home and abroad, among others. In France, Italy and Croatia, and can be found in collections including the National Ethnographic Museum in Warsaw, the National Museum in Wrocław, the Silesian Museum in Katowice and many Polish and foreign private collections. He has a biography in the World Encyclopedia of Naive Arts. A number of documentary films have been written about him (eg Ska Erwin Adam Sikora from 2005) and Lech Majewski made a feature film about the painter and the Janowski Group. Angelus (2001). Currently he lives in Katowice in Zawodzie district. In 2012 he was awarded the title of Bialystok Janosch, awarded by Gazeta Wyborcza for his contributions in preserving the cultural identity of Upper Silesia and the region's reputation. In 2013, awarded with the Gold Badge of Honor for Merit for the Silesian Voivodship. In 2014 he performed in the music video of the group "Pilar" - in the song "Świt" played himself.