Dreaming Magritte

This project was commissioned by Schirn Kunsthalle (Germany) in the context of an exhibition of surreal works by René Magritte that took place in the summer of 2017. The main idea was to produce a body of supporting work, rooted in the idea of Sejkko dreaming Magritte.

This was an interesting opportunity and a challenge. Most reviews of my work try to classify it as Surrealism. To this I have always responded that while there are some super-natural — even oniric — elements in my pieces, I see my visual work as Magic Realism. And I sustain this, even accepting that all of my childhood visual references were surrealist and expressionist artists. So, dreaming with Magritte brought me to the core of this issue.

With this element settled, I fully embraced the journey into dreaming with Magritte’s Surrealism.

The opening piece in this collection is called ‘Le Jardinier’. It took me to a place where I saw an old lady, in a young body. She was part of some kind of communication involving the forces that are behind what makes the physical world fertile. These forces came from different places. Some were ethereal and cosmic; some others felt very rooted in the earth. Sonically this piece is some kind of arrangement of harps and drums.

The second piece is called ‘Si Je Pense a la Lune‘. It is about a young man that acquires some kind of super power by connecting his psyche to the moon. In the third piece — ‘Les Deux Maisons, I focused on the dividing line between what is perceived as the real world, and the reality of our dreamworlds. ‘La Nuit Dans Son Sac à Main‘ tells a micro story about a lady that has learnt to control and navigate her own dream world. In ‘Caraïbes Moi Même’ I indulged in a very obvious interpretation of a Magritte classic, and used it to speak about my upbringing by the Caribbean sea, and the influence that had in the representations I find in my own dream world. My dreaming with Magritte turns a little darker in ‘Les Demandeurs‘, in this second more direct interpretation of Magritte’s original work, I deal with the fight for survival of the ‘authentic soul’ in a place where souls that own their identity are turned into automaton-birds. The series ends in ‘Le Dernier Jour‘, a piece about the last day in which light and darkness keep the universe in place.

Author proofs have been produced on default printing medium: Hahnemühle Baryta Satin. Currently evaluating proofs on FujiFlex (C-Type Prints). Use the contact form for enquires about printing media.

Dreaming Magritte – Le Jardinier

C-Type Print on FujiFlex. Limited-edition of fifteen (15) + 2AP (one in Hahnemuhle Baryta Satin)
Measures (Printed area) 34 x 42.5cm.

To see the remaining six pieces in this project click on their titles below, and click here to read more including an interview at Schirn Kunsthalle.

Si Je Pense a la Lune