ARTIST STATEMENT
Every nightmare has a silver lining, shines light on the condition of sleep paralysis and prompts viewers to look past the widely understood view that sufferers only experience traumatic episodes and take on a new way of thinking. The condition is most often associated with frightening experiences featuring demons or intruders and while I have experienced such situations, through controlling my thoughts I have been able to manipulate my episodes to achieve comfort, creativity, and excitement. These experiences have been pieced together like a puzzle and brought back to life on bed linen which is placed on a child-sized bed.
ARTWORK PROCESS
The work was inspired by personal experiences with sleep paralysis and the vivid though fragmented imagery I recall and document in my Dream Journal. The imagery was first sketched onto the mis-matched sheet and pillowcase, reflecting my own bed linen. Multiple layers of watercolours were applied to bring the designs to life, while also keeping them slightly blurred to reflect the experiences. Ink and paint pens were used to add details to imagery of the setting, bed, small child and characters who visit me. Finally, the pillowcase was stuffed and the sheet was draped to reflect a child’s bed.
