The friction between innate human liberty and the invisible societal structures binding us, suppressing our innate right as a creation to enjoy freedom. The sorrows one must go through just to stay alive - yet what exactly is to be alive? We build and are ultimately imprisoned by invisible cages of our own making. Chipping away our soul while the pristine semblance we maintain only reflects an inner fear of being devoured by the hyenas.

The beauty of the human face lies in its ability to conceal sorrow whilst maintaining order: an ever present storm within the calm. The paintings were never about what the face conveys, but rather in what it masks. Artist SANO uses the figures to convey the masked blues of the human condition; the figure’s expressions convey no overt emotion, yet evoke a profound melancholy.

This, however, is juxtaposed by the bright butterflies projecting their presence across the composition. If the figures represent the melancholic state of the human mind, the butterflies signify the limitless hope found in dreams. Dreams - vision of a better self, world, future - are what drives us through the hardships of modern society. This is what artist SANO yearns to capture: the duality of the radiant yet broken state of man.