My Life My Soul 

This dreamlike landscape populated with mythological figures is by Jacek Malczewski, a Polish painter associated with the Symbolist movement. Malczewski lived through a period of intense political upheaval and national identity formation in Poland. Here, we see figures drawn from classical antiquity, like fauns, alongside nude figures that seem to represent the artist's own psyche. The painting might at first seem to draw from traditional European mythology. However, the inclusion of the artist's self-portrait subverts these traditional narratives. He reframes the classical world through his own subjectivity and experience. "Art should embrace all aspects of life" he once said, "the beautiful and the terrible." In his lifetime, Malczewski's work was interpreted as a reflection of Poland's complex history, its struggle for independence, and its cultural identity. Malczewski layers personal and collective experiences, which allows us to reflect on the emotional dimensions of historical consciousness, and the weight of cultural heritage.