Enigma of the Night 1953

Conroy Maddox painted "Enigma of the Night" with what looks like thin layers of oil to create this dreamlike landscape. It’s a painting where the process feels really present, like you can see the artist making decisions as they go. The texture of the painting is smooth, almost flat, and the colors are muted – blues, greens, and blacks that give the scene a quiet, mysterious vibe. There's a darkness to it, but also this strange clarity. The way the trees are painted, these vertical lines creating a screen, reminds me of Magritte. But Maddox adds his own twist with the horse and the cone, making it weirder, more personal. The horse, rearing up like that, feels so alive, but also trapped, somehow. The little white spots on its legs? Those are where the magic happens. It makes you wonder about the stories that art can tell, stories that don't have a clear beginning or end, but just keep unfolding in your mind.