Haunted: The Weight Beneath the Surface

"When my eyes are open and I am awake, I hold complete control. I direct the motion. I hold the reins.

But when the room goes dark, the subterranean mind takes over."

There is a distinct contrast between the daytime world of precision and focus, and the vivid landscape of the subconscious mind. For me, night isn't always a place of quiet rest; it can be a landscape where unresolved worries, deep loss, and thoughts of the future cycle endlessly while the body lies still.

Haunted was born out of that tension—the silent exhaustion of carrying unseen weight, quiet grief, and the constant effort to cope with what lies ahead.

I didn't paint this collection seeking sympathy, nor as a display of vulnerability for the sake of it. I painted it to process the weight on my own terms.

By taking the palette knife, heavy acrylics, and the raw ashes of burned illustration papers, I physically pulled those heavy, looping thoughts out of my mind and grounded them onto the canvas. Transforming those ashes into thick, sculpted impasto became a ritual—burning away the past to build volume, structure, and presence out of what was destroyed. Painting this is a deliberate act of quiet survival and reclaiming calm. It is how I drain the heat from those internal storms, step by step, until the mind can finally achieve stillness.

Haunted is a record of facing uncertainty, carrying loss, and transforming that internal noise into something steady, cold, and quiet—so I can clear the path forward.

Original Canvas & Acquisition Details

«Haunted»
Original Impasto Acrylic & Burned Paper Ashes on Canvas
Dimensions: 50 × 62 cm
Status: Available for purchase (NOK 9,000)

This piece is currently available directly through private inquiry or via my official FINN.no listing prior to being vaulted for upcoming gallery display. Serious inquiries and collector reservation requests can be made directly through the contact page on emilyyapdesign.com.