ESCAPISM

"Escapism" by Mike Rego

​

Acrylic on paper

16" x 24"

2021

​

​

​

“Escapism” is about how fantasy and fiction act as a form of escape. The idea of coming home after a long day, and watching a movie or playing a videogame lets us escape from the mundane stresses of the real world. In this piece, a teen boy is entering through a portal from the real world to a world of fantasy. He’s coming home from the stressful real world to take reprieve in a world full of magic and monsters. The other characters are magical creatures greeting their friend back, like how some videogame characters would when you first load the game. The real world is brown, desaturated, and bland. Our teen is wearing simple non-descript clothes in bland colors, but the fantasy world is bright and saturated, with colorful, magical characters in dramatic costuming. The piece shows how we take a break from the desaturated aspects of everyday life to escape to larger than life fantasy to recharge for the next day.

​

​

​

Click here for the artist website