‘The Language of Dreams’: Exploring the boundaries between the waking world and the dreamscape

This month, Gemelli Gallery in Ta’ Qali Crafts Village, Attard, opens its doors to The Language of Dreams, a major group exhibition that brings together 13 artists from Malta, the UK, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Russia, China and the USA. Curated by Emma Weller, a London-born artist and curator now based in Malta, the exhibition opened on Friday, 17 October and remains open to the public until 25 October (weekdays 8am to 2.30pm, Saturday 10am to 12noon).

Dreaming, whether as a cognitive process or an aspirational act, is a universally-recognised experience, making it a compelling subject of enquiry for us all. Yet the ways in which we dream and interpret those dreams can vary profoundly, shaped by memory, experience and emotion. The artworks in this exhibition explore that diversity of vision while also highlighting the deep common ground we share.

Structured across two interconnected rooms, The Language of Dreams unfolds as a journey through the many layers of dreaming. The first room draws upon the psychological and metaphorical language of dreams, articulating the presence of fears and anxieties in the waking world.

In the first room, Sign by Portuguese artist Joana Simães, now based in London and previously exhibited at the Saatchi Gallery, explores the unsettling imagery of teeth in dreams. The work draws on childhood memories of her mother’s belief that such dreams carried omens. Dreams of teeth are often linked to anxiety, a sense of losing control, or social vulnerability. Simães captures this tension with a striking visual approach; the open mouth suggests a silent scream, while hands reach into its fleshy interior. Inspired by her mother’s belief in the significance of dreams, the work reflects the space where personal and inherited fears come together in the subconscious.

The second room of the exhibition features works that use organic growth, spirituality and artificial intelligence as metaphors for the dream state as well as human aspirations, exploring how we seek meaning and connection beyond the material world.

Maria Cutajar’s Ħolma Perfetta (The Perfect Dream) presents a Maltese landscape of striking beauty, where flourishing vegetation suggests both the allure and unpredictability of love. Yet, beneath the dense undergrowth there is void of darkness, while brooding clouds twist above, signalling an approaching storm. What begins as a lush, dreamlike scene gradually reveals its tension, reflecting upon the precarious nature of love and the way our hopes and dreams can dissolve into uncertainty. Cutajar is an emerging artist currently pursuing a Master’s in Fine Art at the University of Malta.

The selected artworks engage with motifs, material choices, historical references and symbolic imagery to explore how the imagination navigates and reflects the complexities of life. Together, the two rooms create a dialogue between inner and outer worlds, between what is felt and what is imagined, what is inherent to the earth and what lies beyond.

The exhibition is accompanied by a curatorial booklet that provides audiences with deeper context through poetry, written reflections and related artworks. One poem featured in the booklet, The Unborn Swim by prominent Maltese contemporary artist Gulja Holland, accompanies her paintings Baby II and Baby III, both depicting dolphin foetuses. In the poem, Holland expresses a longing to return to “weightless nights beneath the tide”, a previous life or dream state beyond humanity and its burdens.

In ancient cultures, dreams were often regarded as sacred. They were seen as moments when the soul could transcend the body and commune with other realms. Today, we understand them as deeply psychological processes, yet they still hold that same mystery, that same sense of crossing into another dimension. This exhibition reflects how artists continue to navigate that boundary between science and spirit, anxiety and release.

The Language of Dreams is less about the act of sleeping and more about the cognitive, creative and aspirational quality of dreaming, how art allows us to re-examine reality. Through painting, sculpture, digital media and poetry, the exhibition reveals how the dream functions as both subject and method, guiding artists towards extensive forms of expression.

Featuring both established and emerging artists, The Language of Dreams reflects the richness of Malta’s contemporary art scene and its dialogue with broader international movements. The exhibition invites viewers to enter a space where the subconscious is examined, where dreams serve not only as reflections of the mind but also as windows into our shared human experience.

The participating artists are Maria Cutajar, Jessica DeMers, Wallace Falzon, Shanice Farrugia, May Franzen, Gulja Holland, Marina Plotnikova, Nathan Portelli, Emily Salnitro, Sabina Smialek, Joana Simães, Hui Sun and Emma Weller