Squirrel MonkeyLimited edition print Paper Print 
by Ryan Louder

Signal Rating: 5/10 — Moderate
Classification: Hypnagogic

This painting by Ryan Louder is part of a body of work shaped by his neurological condition — Narcolepsy with REM Intrusion Hallucinations, clinically confirmed via MSLT at Guy's Hospital, London. The work contains hypnagogic imagery — embedded secondary images, phantom figures, and forms emerging from within the scene.

Neuroaesthetic markers identified: Digital-medium painting with notable hypnagogic markers: the entire figure dissolves into a fog-like ground with no distinction between background and periphery; the face — particularly the eyes — is hyper-realised in deep red-brown against the dissolved body; the white tufts at the ears create a crown-like or horned silhouette; the figure appears to materialise from vapour rather than exist in any defined space; the contrast between the vividly rendered face and the dissolving body is characteristic of hypnagogic partial-perception

These markers are not deliberate artistic techniques but direct visual recordings of what REM intrusion hallucinations look like. The imagery emerges from neurological experience, not metaphor. Ryan has painted over 2,000 works, with over 1,000 originals sold. Each painting in this collection has been subjected to neuroaesthetic forensic analysis to identify and catalogue the perceptual phenomena present.

A squirrel monkey curls into itself at centre — body in a C-curve, tail looping across the upper back to form a near-complete circle around the head. The fur is rendered in warm cadmium yellow and golden-brown, built with short impasto strokes following the animal's topography. The face, emerging from below the curled tail, is the focal point: dark eyes with wide amber-ringed pupils hold the viewer directly, the mouth and chin pale and alert. Background resolves into dark green-grey brushwork that refuses to describe anything. The tension between the containment of the animal's curled posture and the directness of its gaze is the painting's dominant quality.

Materials used:

Oil on Canvas

Details:

• Oil painting on Canvas
• One of a kind artwork
• Size: 175.26 x 149.86 x 1.02cm (unframed)
• Signed on the front
• Style: Photorealistic
• Subject: Animals and birds

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