I am writing from my room in the Mouhit Space, reflecting on how this residency came about. It is hard to describe how meaningful this time in Tunisia has been for me. It comes on the back of a long period of physical isolation in Australia due to covid. So this is my first opportunity to travel abroad in some time. However, it was due to the lengthy lockdowns that I made my first animated work. This was with no awareness of NFTS, but was motivated by my desire for an audience to be able to more deeply engage with my paintings whilst viewing them online. It was one of these first animations that then opened the door to the crypto art world.
It was in the crypto space (a Clubhouse room) that I first met Kenza. Her genuine, dedicated and transparent approach to everything she does was of my first impressions of her and this has not wavered since our meeting. We went on to become friends and she has supported my practice and collected my work from the beginning. We have bonded over many things, including our shared ideals around the potential to be explored in this new era of digital art, and how this new technology could be used to have a positive impact on all areas of society, especially those who are at a disadvantaged.
When Kenza invited me to travel to Tunisia it was an instant YES. I have a deep love of history and architecture and this along with my interest in philosophy, human connection, dreaming, sharing and storytelling underpins most of my practice. As soon as I committed to the residency I started thinking about the body of work I would paint and began working on the pieces for the physical exhibition. So, the works for FEEDING DREAMS are the summary of my thoughts, feelings and experiences in the lead up to my visit here. Now I am here I feel like part of me has been referencing Tunisia in my paintings for a long time. My utopian geometric worlds mirroring much of what I see around me.
Two of the paintings for the exhibition were then animated and bought to life, so the concept of feeding dreams has been extended, as in some ways these pieces being bought to life make them somewhat reminiscent of an actual dream like state.
As I have travelled from Australia to be here in person for both the physical and digital presentations of my art. This in a way is a physical example of how the the crypto art space has bought many people like Kenza and myself together. There have been many positive outcomes from my time in this space, and I truly feel that this is just the beginning of my relationship with Tunisia. As part of the residency I also did a project with local artists connected to the space. This was a truly meaningful way to connect and bond over the creative process, scroll to the end of the post for pics.
All the big philosophical questions about life, love, humanity and art are best considered with good company and in community, and this is essentially what this Feeding Dreams body of work was all about. It’s about working to create the world we want. The world of the future starts with the dreamers of this present today.
Jasmine X
If you would like to see the available animated works – please visit my Known Origin page. If you are in Tunisia you can visit Mono Tunis in the Medina. If you are interested in the painting catalogue (including the works shown above), please get in touch with Kenza or myself .