Existential Anxiety and the Meaning of Death in Zygmunt Andrychiewicz’s The Last Friend: A Psychological Interpretation Through the Lens of Irvin Yalom’s Existential Theory

Abstract

This study aims to provide a psychological analysis of existential anxiety and the concept of death in The Last Friend, a painting by Zygmunt Andrychiewicz (1861–1943), based on the existential perspective of Irvin Yalom. The research adopts an interdisciplinary approach grounded in the intersection of visual arts and existential psychology. Within this framework, the artwork is considered not merely as a visual representation but as a pictorial text open to existential-psychological interpretation. The study employs a qualitative methodology based on interpretive analysis, examining the visual elements, spatial structure, relationships among subjects, and the overall emotional atmosphere of the painting. The analysis is informed by Yalom’s key theoretical concepts, particularly death anxiety as one of the fundamental concerns of human existence. The findings indicate that the painting contains recognizable signs of loneliness, loss, emotional separation, and the human confrontation with mortality. Collectively, these elements allow the work to be interpreted within the framework of existential anxiety. Theoretically, this study is based on the assumption that artistic experience can reflect unconscious layers of the psyche as well as humanity’s fundamental existential concerns. From this perspective, The Last Friend is viewed not only as an individual artistic creation but also as a symbolic representation of the human condition in relation to finitude and existential isolation. Such an approach makes it possible to blur the boundaries between aesthetic experience and psychological experience, allowing art to function as a means of understanding the human condition. Furthermore, the pictorial space and the relationships among the visual elements are organized in a manner that evokes a sense of suspension and existential instability. Within Yalom’s framework, this state of suspension may be interpreted as a confrontation with non-being and an awareness of death. This awareness simultaneously generates anxiety and creates the possibility for philosophical reflection. Consequently, the painting not only represents the psychological state of the subject but also engages the viewer in an empathic experience of existential anxiety. In conclusion, the findings suggest that The Last Friend can be understood as a symbolic representation of the lived experience of confronting death, in which the human subject exists in a suspended state between presence and absence. This study demonstrates that works of art can serve as valuable contexts for exploring the deeper layers of the human psyche, particularly the fundamental anxieties associated with existence.