Jellyfish in the Attic

This was the second time Stephen King’s *The Dark Tower* had influenced me. In the third book of the series, there’s a boy (Jake) who has to pass through a portal leading to another world. But this portal is located in a demonic house ready to devour anyone who ventures inside. The sketch was based on this scene; the jellyfish were added later. It might have been a bit much—after all, the empty room had a certain style to begin with—but honestly, I was on a real high during the process! Portals opening in every corner, from which these enormous creatures—supposedly sea creatures!—burst forth! Meanwhile, a tiny figure tries to pass through the mysterious door as everything explodes around her! Gravity and the structure of the attic have almost lost all meaning! I listen to myself describing this scene, and I think that’s what the rat in the lower left corner was for: a neutral witness who asks nothing of anyone and takes the time to say, “What the fuck?!!!” That rat gave me a chance to catch my breath. Because even just in terms of composition and perspective, this painting was a marathon. When you paint a canvas depicting a scene with so much movement, that scene keeps playing out in your head, and you have to know how to stop it if you don’t want to lose your way. This painting became a veritable mental labyrinth, and I’m more than happy to have made my way out of it! Now, the story is yours; come up with whatever theories you like.