Portrait of the artist as a young man

Auto-portrait? Obscure reflection on the famous novel by James Joyce? Enigmatic brain-teaser? The artist did not respond. And the words? What do they say?

“In this painting, there are words in various languages, unreadable, or nearly so, because their characters have been modified. Are they important? I would say no. I myself have found one word in clear hebrew letters that I had no intention to write there — and which I consider irrelevant. I leave the interpretation for the viewer.”

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