This painting has been floating around the studio for some time. I guess it's been just as elusive as the subject itself.

If you are familiar with Jungian psychology, then you will already have come into contact with the theme that this painting explores.

How do you defeat an unseen enemy, one that always attacks from behind, knowing your every weak point and taking advantage of them? You cannot escape it because it is connected to you, it is part of you, the shadow side of yourself that are ignorant of or deny. You cannot defeat yourself, but you can certainly sabotage yourself. It is the one enemy that you must meet, you must come to know, you must embrace, lest it always be there, just always behind you waiting to spring. It is cunning, often wearing the faces of other people, especially those nearest to you. Its actions will be seen as their actions. This is because, you cannot see it directly. Can you see your own face? Only through a mirror, photo or other image. When you do come to know it, it transforms from your worst nightmare to your most valuable and strongest ally. The vast energy bound up in it can be channelled to beneficial rather than detrimental outcomes. The first steps towards this is acknowledging its existence. The clues of its existence are apparent through the reoccurring patterns of our lives. It takes time, but the reward is great. Rather than feeling that we are pushed and pulled by unknown forces in our lives, we become captain of our ship and can finally navigate the sea of life.

"Shadow Boxing", Leo Plaw, 40 x 30cm, oil on canvas
Original and prints available.

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