Although Dayer does not want there to be just one interpretation, he has given us at @narrativepainting some helpful hints in reading this painting about repressed memory. For Dayer, these magic beings are the Guardians of Memory, the Protectors of History in charge of the fight against forgetting, and against the repression of painful memories. Swirling papers could symbolize memories being recorded. The artist writes that “The bandaged eyes ensure that we are not seduced by the promise of a world without pain, anesthetized to a world of beautiful images without soul.” Even if it is painful, he urges us to face our own personal traumas, so that we may live honestly, free from a life of pretense.
