Zieliński’s painting is characterised by flat, clearly outlined patches of intense colour, reminiscent of pop art, Art Nouveau, or poster art. Beneath the decorative form are however hidden serious themes, as exemplified by Hot. The male face in the painting has been interpreted by researchers as an image of Ryszard Siwiec, who on 8th September 1968, during a high-profile official event at the 10th-Anniversary Stadium in Warsaw, committed suicide by self-immolation to protest the Warsaw Pact’s invasion of Czechoslovakia.