The subconscious can dominate us if we refuse to acknowledge its presence, haunting our actions, appearing in both dreams and waking life. When made into art, these conjured images can offer a singular glimpse into the uncanny, the monstrous or the abject. Artists of all types have historically been gatekeepers to this hallucinatory netherworld of terrifying thoughts, shepherds who act as guides through the depths of the imagination. If we look at contemporary times, painting–perhaps more pertinent than ever as a medium that remains outside the cliches of the entertainment industry–has the potential to disentangle even our most troubling ideas and feelings.