Misfortune

The artist wrote the following diary description of the death of a friend, which probably he later captured for himself in this painting: “Above all, as I look back at the year gone by, it is you who come to mind, my poor, dear friend Blazsej Ladecky; I’ve lost you forever… In the late afternoon your soul departed. It was Sunday June 12, an inhospitable, cold, rainy day; I still had no foreboding. You were already lifeless, lying outstretched in the larger room, and around you your near ones were grieving.”

Katarína Beňová ● “Sedem vecí o…” Ladislav Mednyánszky a jeho denníky (medium.com)