"Tamed," Marian Wawrzeniecki, 1910.
An archaeologist, historian, ethnographer, and only incidentally a painter, Warsaw-born Wawrzeniecki (1863-1943) was a noted eccentric and a bit of a fraud.
From an artistic viewpoint, he had a very individual style; he'd had some training in art but abandoned the formal style he'd been taught and instead embraced his own approach. While classified as a Symbolist painter, he was really more of a Modernist, painting solely to achieve his own vision.
His work reflects Slavic folklore and mythology, often depicting witches and pagan gods, and he's considered a significant figure in the rise of Slavic neopaganism. Many of his works can be taken in multiple ways; this could be an illustration of a legend, or a symbol of humanity conquering nature or evil.
He did some fairly important work as an archaeologist, but also published transcriptions of assorted ancient and medieval documents that historians have since figured out he forged. Exactly why he did that is unknown.
From the National Museum in Warsaw.
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