Mira Żelechower-Aleksiun’s painting is an example of the artist interest
on the subject of portraiture. The painter, counted among representatives
of new figuration and magical realism, has been portraying people and
herself in various conventions since the late 1960s. Through references
to stylistic devices such as metaphor, grotesque or allegory, she creates
multidimensional images of people, full of lyricism and mystery. The women
and men seem alienated and focused, absorbed in reflection on important
life issues. In the 1976 Self-portrait, the artist depicted herself while
painting. In the foreground, in the corner of the painting, we see the surface
of white canvas, and just behind it, the author’s face and a hand holding
a brush close to the face. The enigmatic depiction can be understood in two
ways: the artist ‘creates herself’, or, on the contrary, she strives to make
herself disappear. Mira Żelechower-Aleksiun’s later works are strongly
connected with the memory of Holocaust victims.

Michał Jachuła