The series Before Release is a striking exploration of the human mind, presented through Blockhead’s unique and haunting style. Each piece in the series features a figure with a cardboard box for a head—a vessel symbolizing the mind’s storage of memories, intelligence, and emotions. The tightly closed boxes represent the burden of unprocessed thoughts and unspoken pain, capturing the tension of withholding release.

The paintings project a powerful narrative about the struggle of containing negative emotions, the weight of unresolved memories, and the process of confronting inner turmoil. The figures’ postures are heavy, their boxed heads filled to bursting, yet sealed shut, evoking an almost suffocating sense of suppression.

Through loose yet deliberate brushstrokes, the works contrast chaos with stillness, allowing viewers to feel the pressure and weight these figures carry. The series is a profound statement on the necessity of “opening the box,” of letting go, and how the refusal to release can create a deeply emotional and internal tension. Before Release invites its audience to reflect on their own mental loads and the power of releasing what weighs them down.