Justine Kang (2027, Illustration and Comparative Literature)
Lullaby, 2022
Digital
In the globally ubiquitous use of folkloric figures to push certain messages, bogeymen are one of the most common forms taken. Here, the Sandman is depicted as a nightmarish figure bathed in a warm glow, one which seems to liquefy the other figure, reflecting the duality of these roles and their depictions. He may bring you dreams with his many umbrellas, but he is not above taking your eyes, should you not fall asleep, and feeding them to his own children.
Lullaby, 2022
Digital
In the globally ubiquitous use of folkloric figures to push certain messages, bogeymen are one of the most common forms taken. Here, the Sandman is depicted as a nightmarish figure bathed in a warm glow, one which seems to liquefy the other figure, reflecting the duality of these roles and their depictions. He may bring you dreams with his many umbrellas, but he is not above taking your eyes, should you not fall asleep, and feeding them to his own children.
The cowering figure on the bed is rendered in a painterly, nearly melting style, while the Sandman is flat and composed moreso of lines, indicating the separation between the worlds they come from. His dizzying details and patterns, geometric and organic alike, overwhelm the eye, just like a disorienting dream would.
Stories can be told to explain certain phenomena, quelling our primal fear of the unknown. But cautionary tales may have the opposite effect; several fears are at play here: of something watching you in the dark, of something behind your back, even of what tomorrow might bring - and hence, of falling asleep.
From The Witching Hour, Granoff Center for the Creative Arts, January 23 - February 26, 2023
