Fairy Tales & Real Life

One of my favourite fairy tales is 'Alice in Wonderland'. A friend on Live Journal suggested I paint something Alice related, which gave rise to this painting. I've always been very proud of it, and it was eventually bought by someone other than the lady who suggested it. She had been lusting after it, so her mum bought it for her to put away for Christmas.



I think what I like about Alice in Wonderland is the sense of the comical, the surreal, and the idiotic. I've always been drawn to the ridiculous characters, but more importantly to the layout of the text, and the illustrations. Obviously, the classic ones by Sir John Tenniel in 1965 are the definitive ones, and far more macabre than Disney.

The most important thing for me is that I finally found out why my perception is screwed up, and it was due to Alice in Wonderland. Since I was a child, I have had strange feelings in my hands, as if they're melting into what I'm holding. I also feel like I'm very large, and then very small, or that things are too far away. I've never been any good at judging distance, using mirrors to do things, and worst of all I can't see 3D films at the Imax.

Anyway, a friend of mine found "Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS)" when searching randomly, and it turns out this is what is wrong with me! It's a condition often experienced by those who have migraines, and is named after the book because of the similarities. Indeed, Lewis Carroll was well known for suffering migraines, and possibly had AIWS himself, and it was these experiences he drew on when writing Alice in Wonderland.

For more information on AIWS see here.