Beautiful Mind by Ryan Louder

Original oil painting on canvas by London artist Ryan Louder — a small 2017 portrait in luminous theatrical pink against warm brown, eyes half closed in that inward moment between waking and sleep. Part of his REM intrusion collection.

Original oil painting on canvas. One of one, unframed.

The pink is theatrical on purpose — skin that glows rather than skin that exists. I paint without a plan, and the near-sleep expression arrived on its own: chin on hand, lids lowered, the exact threshold of falling asleep while staying aware. My narcolepsy, clinically confirmed at Guy's Hospital in London, means I know that threshold better than most, and portraits like this are how I record it.

Carefully packed and sent fully insured from my London studio. One of one — when it's gone, it's gone.