Radio Silence 2021

"Radio Silence" is an oil painting by Michael Cheval. Looking at this painting, I can imagine Cheval building up layers of color, adding textures, and patiently crafting this bizarre scene. It is like he is creating a stage set. A dreamlike world where a woman wears a curtain, a portal, on her head, with a little goldfish swimming inside. A surreal idea! I can just see Cheval now, meticulously applying paint, blending colors, and refining each detail. He might have been thinking about the relationship between reality and illusion, or maybe he just wanted to make something beautiful and strange. It reminds me of Dali, or Magritte, how painters create their own universe. You can feel him playing with that. Painting is a conversation, an ongoing exchange of ideas. We get to bring our own experiences and interpretations to the table, making the conversation even richer. It’s really up to you what you feel or think when you look at it.