Sleepwalkers

2021

Excerpt from EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME:

Although we tend to view sleep as a purely personal affair that eludes any system of control, barracks, boarding schools, dormitories, hotels, marital beds, etc. show that how we sleep, when we sleep and with whom we sleep is subject to very strict conventions and hierarchies. The work with its epaulettes and earplugs like military knobs, reminds us of the militarization of sleep and the blurred boundaries between the nightgown and the uniform. Blankets, duvets, essential oils, earplugs, Bluetooth, sleep masks, blackout curtains, sleeping apps with over forty million downloads, sleep soundtracks. The sleep industry proffers endless products. In this work soft wool is embroidered with wire from headphones, an aid millions of people need every night to help them fall asleep. – Hannah Toticki

Photos by Christian Brems