“Waking Dream” by Sidney Fels, Baerbel Neubauer, Sachiyo Takahashi

Title:

Waking Dream

Artist(s) and People Involved:

Performers:



• Sidney Fels
• Baerbel Neubauer
• Sachiyo Takahashi

Symposium:

• ISEA2002: 11th International Symposium on Electronic Art

Venue(s):

• Warehouses 4 & 20 on the Garden Pier in the port of Nagoya , Nagoya , Japan

Artist Statement:

We live in two illusory states: awake and dream. The two only co-exist at a special time during a “waking dream”. At this point, we only exist; dream and awake co-exist. This can happen when we are waking up in the morning and is accompanied by a strong sense of situatedness and paralysis. It can be an unsettling, frightening, and enlightening moment. In one experience, we feel pressure on our chest holding us down in our bed but we can see the room around us. Something is happening around us, trying to get us out of bed but we can’t get up. We are aware but immobile. Tension mounts and we try harder and harder to raise up. We panic and struggle. Then, we realize, we are dreaming and fall back asleep hoping to really wake up. This pattern cycles around as if layers of consciousness are being peeled back. In “Waking Dream”, we explore this moment of coexistence. What does it mean? Is this “reality” free of illusion?

Category:

• Performances
• Concert - Audio/Visual