Zmory (Зморы) — The Nightmare Feeders

Zmora nightmare spirit painting confronts the terror of sleep paralysis through raw expressionism.

Zmora Spirit Characteristics in Polish Folklore

Specifically, this series explores the Polish nightmare demon called Zmora—a creature whose name connects directly to our modern word “nightmare.” Furthermore, these works capture the suffocating presence described in Slavic folklore: a spirit that sits on sleeping chests, stealing breath and trapping minds between waking and sleep.

Working in layered acrylic on canvas, these zmora nightmare spirit painting works show the demon’s many forms. Additionally, the creature appears as moths, cats, even threads slipping through keyholes. Moreover, regional beliefs across Poland describe Zmora as wandering souls—people lost in deep sleep or those who died without last rites, forever trapped between life and death.

The paintings channel that moment of pure dread: consciousness awake but body frozen, something pressing down on your chest. Similarly, like the folklore itself—passed through generations, growing darker with each telling—these canvases work through weight and layers, building fear through paint.

Category: Nightmare Spirit – SLEEP PARALYSIS DEMON

Zmora sleep paralysis demon painting by HOHLIK - expressionist acrylic artwork depicting the Slavic nightmare spirit with oppressive dark layers suggesting suffocation and paralysis

Themes in Zmora Nightmare Art

First, this nightmare spirit painting series explores bodily betrayal, consciousness trapped in frozen flesh. Second, Zmora exists between worlds in folklore traditions, neither fully alive nor completely dead. The demon represents that horrible in-between state we all fear.

Ultimately, these paintings capture the terror of helplessness. When something sits on your chest and you know, with absolute certainty, that evil fills your room, yet you cannot move or scream. This theme drives the entire zmora painting series.

Primarily, this nightmare creature appears as the wandering soul of sleeping people or those who died badly. Consequently, Zmora can shift into many shapes in Slavic belief: moths, cats, mice, or even straw and thread to enter through keyholes. Interestingly, zmora demon painting traditions show the moment of attack, the spirit sitting on legs or chests, causing paralysis and crushing pressure.

The demon also torments horses specifically. During night visits, Zmora braids their manes into impossible knots and rides them until dawn. Additionally, victims wake exhausted, covered in sweat, unable to explain their terror. Finally, people protected themselves with herbs, holy water, or sharp metal objects near the bed.

Painting Technique in Nightmare Spirit Art

The black cardboard works in this series exploit darkness as an active element. Working with acrylic Molotov markers on matte black surfaces, I build these creatures through line alone: no fill, no wash, just accumulated marks that suggest form without fully defining it. The black isn’t background. It’s the marsh fog, the forest depth, the void from which these demons emerge and into which they might dissolve. Linear strokes create structure through rhythm and repetition, echoing both the atmospheric density of Polish wetlands and the fragmented, half-glimpsed nature of folkloric beings. This technique demands commitment, every mark is visible, permanent, unforgiving. There’s no layering to hide behind, no opacity to soften mistakes. The creatures materialize through accumulated decisions, line by line, until they hover between presence and absence.