The Sediment of Dreams

An original mixed media artwork, rich with surreal symbolism and tactile intrigue. Each layer is meticulously built upon a heavy-duty stretched canvas using a myriad of materials, inviting the viewer into a world of texture and depth. Created with professional archival paints and sealed for protection, this piece is designed to endure. The included collage elements are printed with archival inks on fine art papers, ensuring the vibrancy lasts for generations.

60x48

mediums/materials: phosphorescent paints, found objects, paper, wax, photo collage, oxidative inks, distress paint and inks, acrylic pouring, digitally altered images, acrylic paint, watercolor, spray paint, walnut ink, staining mediums, tissue paper, mica powders, glitter, heavy gel medium, gesso, pebeo prism and fantasy paints, ceramic paint, stained glass paint, alcohol inks, iridescent inks, distress crayons, charcoal, pastels, oil pastels, string, beads, jewelry, gems, chains, buttons, foils, newspaper, vinyl, plastic, walnut inks, india ink, colorshift paints and more!

ElementSymbolic MeaningContribution to PaintingThe Watching EyeThe consciousness of deep time, the witness that never sleepsSuggests that every layer of sediment—every dream—is observed and rememberedAmanita Muscaria (Red Mushroom)The fruiting body of the unconscious, the dream made visible, the portal to altered statesBreaks through the surface like a dream breaking into waking lifeGeological Texture/StrataThe compression of time, memory as matter, dreams as sedimentCreates the visual metaphor: dreams don't disappear, they settle and harden into the substrate of selfGold Leaf FragmentsMoments of illumination, preserved insights, the residue of revelationSuggests that some dreams leave permanent traces—veins of gold in the rockBotanical Collage ElementsGrowth through decay, the organic archive, nature's journalImplies that dreams, like plants, root themselves in the decomposed matter of past dreamsMonochrome with Red BurstThe eruption of the vivid into the forgotten, the return of the repressedThe mushroom is the one dream you can't ignore, the vision that demands attention Embedded Symbolism: The Eye represents the dreaming self observing itself—the part of consciousness that watches even while we sleep, that archives every image and sensation. The Mushroom is both literal fungus and metaphorical fruiting body: it's what emerges when the underground network finally breaks the surface. In dream terms, it's the symbol that finally makes sense, the image that crystallizes everything beneath it. The Strata/Layers suggest that nothing is ever truly forgotten. Dreams don't vanish—they compress, fossilize, become part of the substrate. You can excavate them. You can find them again. The Gold represents numinous dreams—the ones that feel sacred, prophetic, or impossibly beautiful. They're rare, but when they occur, they're preserved forever, like amber or precious metal. The Texture itself is the most important element: rough, built-up, tangible. This painting insists that dreams are not ephemeral—they have weight, substance, geological presence.

The Sediment of Dreams operates as both artwork and metaphor for the unconscious mind. It suggests that our dream life is not separate from our waking life but is instead the foundation upon which waking life is built. Every dream settles, compresses, and becomes part of the layered self. The painting explores phenomenological memory—the idea that experience leaves physical, textural traces. Just as sedimentary rock preserves ancient seas and forests, the unconscious preserves every dream, every vision, every half-remembered image from the liminal space between sleep and waking. The amanita muscaria is the key: in shamanic traditions, it's the mushroom that opens the door between worlds. Here, it represents the breakthrough dream, the one that rises from the compressed layers of the unconscious and finally becomes visible, undeniable. It's red because it's urgent, vital, alive—a dream that won't be ignored. The eye suggests that even in the deepest strata of sleep, something is always watching, always recording. This is the witness consciousness, the part of us that never fully sleeps, that archives every image and stores it in the mycelial network of memory. The gold fragments are the residue of illumination—those rare dreams that feel numinous, sacred, or prophetic. They don't fade. They're preserved like fossils, waiting to be excavated. Ultimately, The Sediment of Dreams proposes that the unconscious is not chaos but architecture. It's built layer by layer, dream by dream, and if you dig deep enough—if you scrape away the surface—you'll find everything you've ever dreamed, compressed into matter, waiting to be remembered.

"The Sediment of Dreams" Every dream you've forgotten is still here— pressed between layers of sleep, compressed into stone. The eye in the earth has been watching since the first dream fell, since the first image sank into the soft loam of the mind. The mushroom is what rises when the substrate can no longer hold it— the fruiting body of the unconscious, red as a warning, red as a memory you tried to bury. Gold flecks mark the numinous ones— the dreams that felt like prophecy, the visions that left you breathless. They don't dissolve. They mineralize. Dig deep enough, and you'll find them all: every symbol, every monster, every impossible landscape, layered like geology, waiting to be unearthed. This is not forgetting. This is sedimentation. This is how dreams become stone, how the unconscious becomes earth, how the mycelial network remembers everything you thought you'd lost.