Dreams:
Both waking time and sleeping time are filled with dreams and illusion. Our attachments and aversions greatly influence the emotional tone and alters the course of events in both the waking and sleeping dream. When we realize this to be true we can experiment with lucid dreaming.
As soon as we catch ourselves creating the dream (for example, the moment we realize we are about to lose our temper) we have the chance to change things. Will we continue to be led around by our reactions or will we center ourselves and act from a place of clarity.
The possibilities are limitless. We can observe the events unfolding around us, learning detachment. We can change the course of events—if we are unhappy with our dream we may choose to manifest a more favorable situation. Alternately we may tire of the endlessness of this transitory dream, and instead stop and manifest peace and quiet. Whatever we choose to do, now we realize that we are responsible for our dream.
Art:
My dreams feed my art and my art enhances the magic of my dreams. There are many magical moments that happen in dreams. My dreams can be scary or mundane, but they can also be radical lucid experiences and opportunities to communicate with other beings. Certain aspects of both the waking and sleeping dream serve to cut through illusion, reminding us to look toward the eternal, unchanging, the Absolute. These moments are the ones I take out of the dream world and into my art world. Mulling these over through my visual and auditory creations, I learn from my dreams. Sometimes the dream seems very obvious, then a year or two later I will look back and see a totally new “obvious” meaning. The dreams provide clues to my meditation practice as well as to my daily living practice.
The dreams manifest through a collection of photographs, spoken word, films, ambients soundtracks, drawings, and mementos. These elements come together in a space where the viewer can relax, draw inwards, and question what it means to be awake in the dream.
Me:
I live in Portland, Oregon, where I make my art and dream my dreams. I got my BA from Smith College back in 1999 and then went on to get my MFA in Photography from University of New Mexico in 2002. Since then life has been one wild and crazy adventure. Check out my website for my dream work, you can participate: Fly Awake PDX.
Questions, comments, dreams or pictures from dreamtime to share? I would love to hear from you.
email me at: contact at lilymichaud dot com