"Sartre en l’enfer(Sartre in hell)” oil on Cardboard 34x36

This is a portrait of Sartre, pointing at you with a crazy smile on his face. But why?
Sartre’s entire philosophy is built around the concept of existence with others. For him, the other person is not just a social fact; they are also an ontological reality that invades us with all their perspectives. The reality of the other is what gives us a personality by pushing us to develop character. We cannot be ourselves while being observed by others. He claims that for you, the others, it is hell (“L’enfer, c’est les autres” - Huis Clos).

The other is not just someone with whom my consciousness communicates; they are also a wall, a guardian, or a boundary. Ultimately, while we live in each other’s prisons, in this painting, Sartre is terrified by this idea. He points at his guardian in his hell, unable to stop looking at the other, so much so that his eyes begin to bleed.