Patient and Painter: The Careers of Sergius Pankejeff

Who was the “Wolf Man”? The person behind this pseudonym may seem familiar to many; after all, “Wolf Man” is the name offered by Sigmund Freud to a patient whose case he discussed in his study of 1918, “From the History of an Infantile Neurosis” (“Aus der Geschichte einer infantilen Neurose”). This text is, in turn, one of Freud's most famous case studies as it offers a new outline of Freud's thoughts on human development and psychoanalytic theory. Indeed, not only Freud, but also his patient, was well aware of the significance of this work. The Wolf Man was therefore willing to disclose his “real” identity, to confess to being Sergius Pankejeff, not only a former patient of the famous Viennese doctor, but one who had contributed to the development of the psychoanalytic discipline. In contrast to Bertha Pappenheim (Freud's and Joseph Breuer's patient “Anna O.”) or Ida Bauer (Freud's patient “Dora”), Pankejeff did not seek to hide behind the pseudonym. He did not seek to retreat from public view, but wrote his memoirs instead.1

Although Pankejeff had worked for many years after the Second World War as an employee in an insurance agency, he saw his profession as that of an academic painter.2 He had, though, never attended an art academy. His life was marked by his illness, and until his death, he remained a psychoanalytic patient. Being a patient was perhaps his true occupation—and even his calling.