Doreen Chan

I am a social practice and multimedia artist based in New York. In the summer of 2019, I moved from my hometown, Hong Kong, to Chicago. With the support of Burger Collection and TOY Meets Art, I created HalfDream, an on-going participatory project that collects dream content of people in different regions and matches common dreams, connecting dreamers based on their subconscious instead of societal boundaries.

I found research showing how the rise of mental disorders and overstimulated emotions shared by people globally has affected their dream patterns during the pandemic. I started looking at dreams as a medium to connect people. My work has shifted from a self-reflective process to deeply considered conversations among participants as a response to the distances among people from the social upheaval in Hong Kong as well as the COVID-19 global pandemic.

This project is more complex than what I can handle by myself. I am very blessed to have a great team working with me and Monique and Joanna (Asia) giving comments on the process of the development of the platform.

Over 3000 dreams have been shared on this online platform with exhibitions showcased in several cities. I have learnt so much from building the platform, meeting dreamers and creating artworks based on their dreams.

Thank you Doreen. I keep day dreaming too, as I believe in the positive nature of thoughts. I already found my dream mate 💭.

Much love and TOY Monique