Descent Into Illuminated Dream

2019
Acrylic and Collage on Canvas
60×48 inches

This painting is an expression of a dream I had, in which I was sinking head-first into dark waters. I looked upwards, to see all my dreams illuminated and running across my body. The dream (and painting) occurred during a time in my life when I was taking stock of myself, reassessing my past life in order to move forward and become something new. The dreams on the body are a vision from the head not pictured in the painting. To portray the dreams, I utilized cards from the Mexican game Loteria. I felt these cards to express the many aspects of life, and in particular the factors of my domestic life as mother and wife. The figures are arranged with focal points to represent different main roles – eg. the lady, the drunkard, the musician, the devil.

Surrounding each figure are satellite images, swirling in repetition to give animation and life to each role. It is the artist’s intent that the images be interpreted by the viewer in the context of their own personal lives. Overlying the dream images, henna tattoo patterns create a dynamic cosmic net to connect all the dreams. In the background, sea snakes swim downward with the figure, imparting the dynamic and imperiled atmosphere of the dream.