Heinrich Tischler’s self-portrait, 1937.

Living under constant threat led to anxiety, frustration and depression. The artist Heinrich Tischler illustrated his emotional and spiritual crisis in this self-portrait, in which he depicted himself as a “living dead” spirit, clenching his fists in a gesture of helplessness. Due to Nazi persecution, Tischler, like many Jewish artists, had to abandon his work as a painter and architect. To support his family, he found employment as a drawing teacher at a Jewish school.