R. Cabrera (XX) - El equilibrio improbable

R. Cabrera - "The Improbable Equilibrium"
Oil on canvas - Hand-signed - 2023

Artwork by the artist R. Cabrera (XX), created in the oil on canvas technique.
We guarantee a durable product with visual quality.
Dimensions: 80 x 60 cm painting with a depth of 3 cm.
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The piece will arrive within ten days, depending on the destination country.

In this oil painting on canvas, a scene unfolds that masterfully combines tenderness and risk, playfulness and tension. With a centered, symmetrical composition, the work shows a gray-furred cat with piercing green eyes peering out from an opening, while in the adjacent area a reddish mouse watches it from below, both separated by a thin cracked wall. At the top, crowning this theatrical staging, a snail moves slowly, as if with each step signaling the fragility of the moment.

Technically, the execution of the oil painting is precise and realistic, approaching hyperrealism in the details of the fur, the shadows, and the wet reflections in the eyes of the characters. The black background surrounding each animal heightens spatial depth, contrasting starkly with the rough, cracked surface of the pink wall. This structure, reminiscent of an abandoned wall or worn theater scenery, suggests the passage of time and the permanence of the improbable: a cat, a mouse, and a snail, coexisting on the same plane without violence or urgency.

Conceptually, the work speaks to us about the pause, the threshold between instinct and decision. The cat does not attack, the mouse does not flee, and the snail — universal symbol of slowness — observes without knowing that he is, perhaps, the point of union between the two. The cat's gaze turns toward the mouse, but there is no aggression: it is a curious, almost fraternal look. The mouse, instead, looks upward, toward the snail, with an expression that borders on fascination. There is here a game of inverted hierarchies: the weaker one stands higher, the predator hesitates, the insect guides.

From a narrative standpoint, the painting recalls the classical visual fables, where animals replace humans to convey universal emotions and dilemmas. The scene is a frozen moment of potential, a balance that could break or be maintained, depending on the will of its actors. It is a silent homage to the moment before action, where everything is possible and nothing has been decided yet.

"The Improbable Balance" is a work that blends technical realism with narrative depth, proposing a microcosm charged with symbolism and restrained tension. The use of oil paint enhances the warmth of the colors and the visual texture of each element, while the composition establishes a direct dialogue between the characters and the viewer. This painting is not just an animal scene: it is a mirror of our own suspended decisions, of unexpected encounters, and of the delicate balance between nature and the possibility of peace.