The artistic and spiritual journey of a Polish January insurgent, artist-painter and benefactor of the poor - Adam Chmielowski, who, after years of turbulent youth, decides to abandon his former life and the world gets to know him as Brother Albert. His rebellious nature and disagreement with evil and suffering cause him to escape by a trick from Tsarist captivity hidden in a coffin. After achieving fame, he abandons art to serve the people. His tragic fate is crowned by a breakdown, expulsion from the Jesuit order and confinement in a mental institution. However, he was soon reborn and returned, as Brother Albert - a future saint. The film's story of his life is complemented by the fates of his famous friends and artists - Helena Modrzejewska and Jozef Chelmonski.