In his famous soliloquy from Act IV, Shakespeare's conjuror, Prospero, invokes the fundamental dichotomies around which the play revolves: reality and illusion, art and life. Looking back over the last one hundred years, we must feel Prospero's words somewhat prophetic. Dreams and dreamscapes had, of course, always furnished material for the arts, but the subject matter depicted was usually historical or mythical rather than personal.

Chris Baker, Hope Lies in Dreams, gouache on paper

The publication of Freud's Interpretation of Dreams on the threshold of the twentieth century gave new importance to the concept of the unconscious mind and posited dreams and dream symbolism as an avenue to understanding its workings. With Andre Breton's Surrealist Manifesto in 1924, personal dream imagery became mainstream in the visual arts. And so it remains today.

The Stuff of Dreams is the theme for Oxford's 2024 theme exhibit, which we invite you to attend. The exhibit opens Saturday, April 20 and continues through Saturday, June 15. An Artists' Reception is planned for Saturday, May 18 from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM. It is open to the public at no charge. The Stuff of Dreams contains interpretations of the theme by over forty artists working in a range of different styles and media.

 

Barbara Fox, Remembering a Dream, watercolor on paper

Bridget van Otterloo, Queens of the Night, oil and silver leaf on board

David Dorsey, George's Dream, oil on canvas

Kristen Woodward, Mask Portal, encaustic on board

Tony Dungan, Dream Weaver, acrylic on canvas