The Visual Dream Journal began as an attempt to catch some of those fragments before they vanished completely. Each image is created through a collaboration between my subconscious mind and artificial intelligence. I feed it dream notes, symbols, memories and fleeting impressions, then together we reconstruct something that never physically existed, yet somehow feels familiar. Not quite a photograph. Not quite a dream. Something suspended somewhere in between.
I don’t see these images as finished artworks. They’re dream seeds. Visual records of moments that would otherwise be lost. Like pages torn from a sketchbook, they document the raw material from which future artworks may emerge. Some will remain as digital artefacts. Others may eventually find their way into my scratchboard practice. The image itself isn’t a blueprint. It’s a reference point. A glimpse into a place that only existed briefly before fading away again.
This edition is currently available for collection:
• $50 per numbered edition
• A maximum of 5 numbered editions of this dream seed will ever be released
• Editions are allocated on a first come, first served basis
• Once all 5 editions have been collected, this dream seed is considered fully allocated
• Collectors receive a high resolution digital file
• Proof of ownership is recorded on this collection log
• You are welcome to print the image yourself, use it as a desktop or home screen background, or relist your edition for sale here in the future
Part of what interests me about this project is that no two people are likely to experience the same sequence of dreams. The collection grows one dream at a time, like a visual diary assembled from moments that nearly slipped through the cracks. Every edition represents a small piece of evidence that this particular dream existed at all.
If you’d prefer to bring this dream fragment into the physical world, this image may also be available on a range of everyday items through my shop, including apparel, mugs and homewares. A dream doesn’t have to stay trapped on a screen.
If this particular dream seed gets its hooks into you, I can also use it as the reference image for a commissioned scratchboard artwork.
• Hand scratched scratchboard original
• 30 x 30 cm
• $1,250 commission price
The dream image acts as the starting point and reference for the artwork. Some scratchboard pieces may stay quite close to the original dream image, while others may evolve as they emerge through the process. Unlike drawing with ink onto white paper, scratchboard begins in darkness. The surface starts completely black and the image is revealed by scratching light back into existence one mark at a time. The dream seed provides the direction, but the final artwork is discovered slowly through the act of making.
Multiple scratchboard artworks may be commissioned from the same dream seed over time. Each piece is created individually and carries its own subtle variations, marks and character that emerge through the handmade process. They may share the same dream, but no two pieces will ever be identical.
Most dreams disappear without leaving any evidence they were ever there.
This one managed to leave a trace.
Andy C Marshall 