In Nocturne, artist Joshua Hagler depicts a scene based on a dream he had following the birth of his daughter, Mila. He recalls that this was a false awakening dream, in which he opened his eyes to see a baby floating inches from his face. Though brief, the dream has haunted him since because he couldn’t tell if the baby was Mila or the spectral form of his infant brother who died when the artist was six. Ahead of his daughter’s birth, Hagler frequently felt the presence of his brother, often asking him to grant Mila safe passage into the world. In Nocturne, Hagler has placed the floating child above his wife, artist Maja Ruznic’s, head while he turns away from them--his face stricken with terror. The pile of blankets drapes across the bottom of the painting; becoming more abstracted as they droop across the surface of the canvas. A patch of vibrant magenta slashes across the space of the headboard just above Hagler’s face serving as an eerie halo highlighting the dreamer in this nightmarish scene.