Night Demon, 2021, Prismacolor on cardboard.
Time doesn't stop for you, no matter how much you wish it could. 1 AM, 2 AM, 3AM, 4AM, the later you stay up, the louder it gets. Is it just your mind playing tricks on you, or is something really there? Sleep is inviting, but it can also be terrifying.
This artwork is about sleep, or more so, a lack thereof. Sometimes I find myself staying awake late at night because I have always always felt a peacefulness in the quiet solitude the comes with it. After a certain hour, however, I know I have hit my limit. Still, I persist, as if something is holding me back, as if there is something to miss. Then comes fear. All too familiar, I know what will happen next if I try to sleep. Paranoia will place figures in corners of my eyes, noiseless yelling in my ears, and images of horror will play behind my closed eyes. When I finally do fall asleep, it won't be long until a vivid, unsettling dream rolls in to wake me up in a cold sweat. I do not always have trouble sleeping, as it usually comes in waves, but when I do there are no sweet dreams for me.
