Dream (夢)

This artwork explores the character ‘dream’ (夢), originally depicted in ancient Chinese with a negative connotation of nightmares and curses. The form of the character suggests a shrine maiden with a large eyebrow decoration, cursing the king, alongside the shape of a bed. While ‘dream’ often carries a positive meaning in English, its ancient origins in Chinese tell a different story, mirroring my fascination with how cultures assign different meanings to the same word.

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Born in Hong Kong, Bryan Mew is an Australian Chinese artist who has been shortlisted as a finalist for multiple Australian art prizes including the 2021 Lloyd Rees Memorial Youth Art Awards, 2021 National Capital Art Prize and 2022 Lethbridge 20000 Art Prize. He has also been a finalist in the Australian Bluethumb art prize in 2021 and 2023. Mew has furthermore participated in shows at Melbourne’s Brunswick Street Gallery, the Red Gallery, and The Other Art Fair in Melbourne, Sydney and Los Angeles. Furthermore, he was featured in Australia’s Art Edit Magazine in 2022.

Mew's current art practice was inspired by his 2 years living in Japan, where he learnt about the origins of the Japanese Kanji writing system that dates back over 3000 years ago. He believes the study of these characters allows the very essence and meaning of humanity in ancient times to be revived, relived, transporting ancient traditions to the present. Recently, Mew has participated in a group exhibition in Tokyo, and a solo exhibition based on his art residency in Nara, Japan.