the fantastic art of beksinski zdzisław beksiński

The landscapes depicted in these works are called ‘hellscapes’ which reflect a scarce and environmentally exhausted place, giving it a gothic and gore appearance. The term dystopia refers to a fictitious place or state where there are severe misfortunes and injustice, where people live under dire conditions. As it turns out, the audience respected his authenticity.ĭystopian Surrealism is a specific genre of Surrealism. He wasn’t concerned with what the audience might like and was loyal to his unconscious expression. These attributions point toward his acceptance of the shadow and psychological maturity. Even though Beksiński never attributed any meaning to his paintings, he has described them to be “optimistic” and at times “humorous”. Similar to this is Sigmund Freud’s concept of the ‘id’. The shadow involves those primitive thoughts, ideas, and instincts of a person that are consciously and socially deemed unworthy. The basic premise of Jung’s psychoanalysis involves the expression and eventual acceptance of the shadow which leads to transformative changes in a person’s personality. According to Jungian psychology, this rather sordid side of the personality is called the ‘shadow’. To most people, his work is an expression of the dark side of the unconscious. One of the most unique characteristics of Beksiński’s work is an emphasis on expression rather than on the pleasantness aesthetics. Anything that a viewer feels when observing an artwork and their attempt to relate it to the artist is essentially a projection of their own psyche. He uses shades of dull colors with extremely fine details that make a seemingly illogical painting look strangely realistic. An unbiased judgment of his dystopian surrealistic work consists of ghastly hellscapes with erotic, dark, and decaying creatures creating an uneasy and suffocating environment.

To understand the psychology behind Beksiński’s work we must deconstruct his work in terms of its objective and probable subjective qualities. The Psychology behind Zdzisław Beksiński Art While it is nearly impossible to describe Zdzisław Beksiński Art through a single art genre, most of his work falls under the ‘dystopian surrealism’ category. Realizing that photography cannot provide him with complete artistic liberty, he turned to sculpting and painting. His genre has been described as ‘surrealistic impressionism’. Beksiński’s started expressing himself through photography in the 1950s. The artist steered clear of associating his paintings with any meaning however art critics continue to link them to various aspects of Beksiński’s life. Zdzisław Beksiński’s opus evokes distinct emotions in every viewer and bodes a universal quality of enchantment.

The fantastic art of beksinski zdzisław beksiński