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Regarding the man in this painting, the mask renders him like another person. It is a superhero you first see. His kitchen behind him becomes his secret bat cave, his underground laboratory. His pots and pans, along with his cooking utensils, become a massive wall of gadgets with unlimited possibilities and purpose. His jacket and normal white t-shirt now become his cape and his costume. He becomes a new man entirely, leaving his old tools behind. No longer are the man's head filled with worries of an ordinary man. The fryers filled with bubbling hot grease and greasy fresh hamburgers are now gone. This ordinary man is now a mysterious, masked man and now a new person, with a new life, escaping his dreary reality. The transformation seemed astonishing, as if to disappear right in front of me as swiftly as it had appeared.
While standing in front of this painting, the first thing that came to my mind was Rey Mysterio. As a kid, I loved watching World Wrestling Entertainment, also known as WWE. My favorite wrestler was Rey Mysterio. Wrestling fans know him as Rey Mysterio, an American luchador of unparalleled talent, the ultimate proof that good things do come in small packages. Mysterio always wore a brightly colored mask, which consisted of two long eagle wings turning into an eagle head and a large Aztec sign on the back. On the front of the mask was a large cross. Mysterio was a devoted religious wrestler, frequently crossing himself before every match and bearing numerous religious tattoos on his body, most notably a cross on his chest attached to rosaries as well as other crosses and allusions to God. His reason for the mask was not only heritage nor religion, but to remain a mystery, becoming a hero to many young children in the process. He took on a personal identity of a masked luchador battling the enemy. Like many luchadors, his mask was sacred to him. It signified respect when his opponents did not try and rip it off.
