Hall 9 2018

Nick Alm, a contemporary painter, created this eerie, evocative painting, "Hall 9," using a muted palette of blues, browns, and yellows. It feels like I’m peering into someone’s memory, a half-forgotten dream maybe. I imagine Alm layering thin washes of paint, building up the atmosphere, and then, in the foreground, he switches gears, using thicker strokes to define the figure. I wonder what Alm was thinking as he painted this scene. Is the figure the protagonist of this story? Are they a witness? There's something about the slightly blurred edges and the way the light filters through the open doorway, creating this sense of anticipation. This piece really speaks to me about the power of painting to evoke mood and mystery. It reminds me of Edward Hopper, in the way it captures these quiet, introspective moments. Artists like Alm and Hopper teach us to really *look*, to see the beauty and the unease in the everyday.