Kill the clones

2.50 x 1.70 m
Acrylic & gouache on canvas
April 2021
 
"Kill the clones" was created based on a dream I had in a difficult phase of my life in the fall of 2020. In this dream I was the protagonist and was given the higher task of saving the world from destruction. Malicious clones were responsible for this and I had to kill them all. I dutifully fulfilled my task and killed all the cloned adversaries. In a dream scene, I stood high above a bend in the river and looked down on the dead clones floating in the water.
 
All of a sudden, a clone came into contact with a cloning machine standing on the riverbank and came back to life. At that moment, I realized in my dream that I would never be able to complete the task I had been given - everything was lost. The world, my world, was doomed. I woke up with this feeling of helplessness and powerlessness in the face of a hopeless situation. This strong feeling that remained in me from the dream was the impetus to paint "Kill the clones". The painting is inspired by the snapshot where I look down from above at the bend in the river at the dead clones who are suddenly revived.


Shadowy figures, unreal faces, unrealistic perspectives, stage-like lighting, strange colors, supposed symbolism - everything is in contradiction, almost in conflict with each other, and becomes the expression of an unreal dream world from which a subliminal feeling of unease arises. In the foreground is the mediation of pure fear and distress, symbolized by large steel beams, which also reflect our being trapped in harmful structures. Like being trapped in a job that pays well but completely restricts us. Or a relationship that gives us security but in which we are not fulfilled. At the same time, it also represents the release from this fear. In the middle, something new forms in a protected space: a woman with red hair in a fetal position symbolizes the eternal hope for a life outside of this fear and the powerful liberation from it. Where do you feel trapped in your life and are afraid to break free? The hope of freedom is always there.

A painting by the emerging artist Baldur Galoor