The Landscape Of Dreams
The Landscape Of Dreams
Universal to the human experience is the language of dreams; they bring a sense of purpose and signify what we as individuals believe to be valuable.
So much so that September 25 has come to be known as World Dream Day to honour the role that dreams play in shaping our lives and fulfilling our potential. Its meaning extends to how they affect and inspire others around us to achieve positive change too.
We hope our latest curation of art, literature and cultural storytelling does precisely that:
Immerse yourself in Studio Ghibli’s dream-like filmmaking
For nearly 35 years, Hayao Miyazaki’s Japanese animation auteurs Studio Ghibli have been giving the world a reason to dream through breathtaking art and empathetic storytelling. Every film resonates with the character’s growth and persistence in pushing forward against obstacles. The emotions and situations they encounter expand beyond the screen with familiarity and depth.
“Yes: I am a dreamer. For a dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.”
― Oscar Wilde, The Critic as Artist
Guayusa, an Ecuadorian ritual of interpreting dreams over tea
Just before sunrise in the Ecuadorian rainforest, members of the Kichwa community boil leaves from the guayusa tree in a large pot known as a guayucero. When the brew is ready, they sit around the fire, sip the tea, and discuss their dreams. The tea is said to bring a state of calm wakefulness that allows for lucid dreaming. They believe that guayusa (pronounced gwai-yoo-sa) facilitates dream interpretation, which is essential to decision-making in the community. Believing that dreams show a glimpse of the future, the Kichwa use them as a guide to how they should approach the day’s work, especially hunting.
Madeleine in the Bois d'Amour, 1888, Émile Bernard
Lucid dreaming or not, many of us associate our dreams with a feeling of flying or soaring through the sky at night while lying asleep in bed. The reason? Many of the earliest guesses were physiological — 1860s German psychologist Karl Scherner thought that the rising and falling of the chest inspired dream flight, while his peer J.E. Purkinje believed that the relaxation inherent in sleep makes dreamers feel like they’re floating.
An adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s, "A Dream Within A Dream"
Take this kiss upon the brow!
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow-
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.
I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand-
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep- while I weep!
O God! can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?
- A Dream Within A Dream, Edgar Allan Poe
“I saw a TV programme about the universe. It was so fascinating. Now I dream of flying into space. I want to go to the moon. It must be fantastic to see our planet from space. I wonder if I would recognise India. Becoming an astronaut is my goal in life.”
― 10-year-old Aniket, from The Guardian’s photo essay, The Dreams Of Children
From Michael Casker's Pet Cloud series
Although being followed by a cloud is usually considered nebulous, Michael Casker's 'Pet Cloud' proves this theory otherwise. This charming photo series features a girl and her pet cloud, playing and exploring the city together – they look like two old friends, playing hide and seek while communicating in different ways.
Claude Debussy’s Rêverie, performed by Valentina Duplyakina
We leave you with one of Debussy‘s first piano solos to make a lasting impact in the world of classical music. He was still trying to find his own voice as a composer at this time (in fact Debussy did not think this work was good at all), yet this beautiful meditation captures lost-in-thought moodiness perfectly. The gently rocking and repetitive opening theme lulls us into a world of lush harmonies, delicate melodies, and rich textures.
