Signals 

Curator: Standing before us is "Signals" by Alex Gross, painted using acrylics. What catches your eye first? Editor: Well, it’s unsettlingly serene. The colors are muted, yet there’s a vibrant undercurrent with these surreal details that suggest a deeper narrative playing out beneath the calm surface. Curator: That tension is what Gross does so well. This painting seems to float somewhere between a dream and a commentary on modern disconnection. Look at the couple—they're physically connected, hands clasped, yet both are tethered to their phones. Editor: Absolutely. Their detachment is heightened by the swirling eyes watching overhead like a benevolent Big Brother and Brother Moon. How very symbolic. And what about those figures emerging from the water? Some appear distressed, others curious. Curator: It is Gross's exploration of our shared, sometimes overwhelming, digital world, maybe? He juxtaposes symbols of nature—the owl, the ram—with modern technology, making us consider the effect of modern existence in an ethereal landscape. It's like the painting is asking what the future holds if we choose to submerge ourselves rather than face each other? Editor: The composition also pulls me in. The way those gazes from the moon and the central eye pull toward infinity is juxtaposed against the submerged heads, like the future may belong to this modern human connection or else it belongs in a submerged subconsciousness. Are we witnessing an evolution? Curator: That’s beautifully observed. Gross’s blending of realism and surrealism really emphasizes this feeling of transition. Are we on the precipice of something wonderful, or are we drowning? Editor: It's a stark but beautiful way to view a cautionary tale, I'd say. The blend of dream and critique sticks with you. Curator: A reminder that even in the most seemingly tranquil of waters, powerful currents are at work. The surface may be still, but below…everything’s changing.