The artwork titled “Euglena (#111)” was created by artist Mark Ryden in 2014. Executed in oil, this piece belongs to the art movements of Lowbrow Art and Surrealism, and fits within the genre of genre painting. It is part of Ryden’s “Dodecahedron” series and showcases his characteristic blend of bizarre and whimsical elements.
In the artwork, there is a young girl with large, expressive eyes, set against a muted, almost nondescript background. She dons a black dress, and her dark hair frames her delicate face. The girl gazes intently at a surreal, anthropomorphic representation of a Euglena, a single-celled organism. This Euglena is depicted as an elongated, translucent entity adorned with various surreal elements, including an eye and a flower-like structure, which evoke a sense of eerie mysticism. The Euglena appears to float on the table in front of the girl, adding a layer of whimsy and dreamlike quality to the composition. Mark Ryden’s expert use of oil paints brings a smooth, almost ethereal texture to the entire scene, enhancing the fantastical and surreal atmosphere of the artwork.
