Signed upper left corner

Study for Incomprehensible Dream I (2003) was exhibited in the Salzburg Museum der Moderne's survey exhibition of the artist's career, entitled One Hundred Women, in 2005. Women feature heavily in many of Condo's works; here, the woman sits in center-stage, seemingly in the grip-like embrace of an unknown, hidden figure behind her. The enigmatic subject matter is heightened by Condo's use of chiaroscuro; curator Ralph Rugoff writes that "in a number of pictures, amorphously defined background areas of darkness or light seem to define or respond to a figure's psychic orientation". This drawing exemplifies this approach in Condo's work; by paying particular attention to shading particular parts of the figure, the woman becomes the centerpiece through which a sense of mystery, foreboding, or even menace is promulgated.

Best known for his imaginative portraits of people and characters, George Condo is credited for inspiring a revival of interest in painting and portraiture. His works have shocked and surprised viewers over his nearly four-decade career, through his idiosyncratic style that manages to deliver humor and horror in turn. His paintings have earned acclaim and praise for their ability to put the contemporary present in dialogue with references to Masters, such as Picasso, Goya, and Velázquez. Using the term "Artificial Realism", the artist once described his practice as the "realistic representation of that which is artificial". His works can be found in the permanent collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Broad Foundation, Los Angeles, and other institutions worldwide. He has also been the subject of major surveys and retrospectives, which have been shown in institutions such as the New Museum, New York, the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC, and the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art.