J’ai Rêvé De Toi

Mélie Notari

Interview by C. VanWinkle

April 19, 2022

We should start at the beginning. Can you describe the prompt that you responded to?

It was a song about being sad, and I remember that there was a lyric that really moved me. It was, “It's too bright at night to see the stars.” I found that really moving. The song was a lot about how that person was feeling. It was nice for me to see that it was about feelings and identity, maybe mental health as well. So I started from there.

What happened next?

Well, I listened to the song again and again to see what I was feeling at the time. And I was writing some thoughts that were coming and it made me feel like… you know, there's this concept called derealization. It's kind of a weird state. It’s when you don't know if you're dreaming and the world is a bit blurry. And I knew I wanted to make something about this.

At first, I was thinking about making a comic because I plan to go to a comic school next year, so that was a bit natural. Then I just decided I would make a painting and went from there. And I knew I wanted to do something about dreams. There's that phenomenon in dreams where you look at your hands and they just do not look the same as in real life. I wanted to make something about this. Also, I have dreams with teeth a lot. So I wanted to integrate these things together.

As soon as I saw your piece, I was really curious about the teeth.

I am obsessed with teeth! They are everywhere. I have a teeth tattoo. I mean they are everywhere. I don’t know where it comes from, but I have a fascination with teeth. I guess it from my dreams, you know? And the fact that they’re the only bones that you can see and they’re in your mouth. It's a bit weird.

It is! Teeth are weird, and I'm glad someone is finally talking about it. Thank you.

We have to!

We've been ignoring this for too long.

Definitely.

Do you often remember your dreams?

It depends. It's in cycles. I don't remember my dreams for a month and then for two weeks I remember all of them and I try to write them down. Yeah, I think they inspire me a lot.

And do you use your dreams in your work often?

Yes! I did a series of several comics about dreams. I took real events that happened to me and tried to make them kind of creepy. For example, I know I had a dream about a baby newborn baby that was, like, touching me. It was weird. So I made a comic about it. And when I was young, I heard scratching in the walls, so I decided that it must have been rats in the wall. It was actually nothing, but it scared me at the time. So I wanted to do something about it.

Oh sure. I know a lot of creative people get ideas from their dreams. It sounds like it's working well for you.

It does! I think the real world is a bit boring, so dreams are a good alternative.

Yeah, that's what the surrealists were all about, anyway. How does how does this piece relate to the rest of your work?

I think it's similar because it's a bit weird at first. I know my grandma gets a bit worried about me every time I show her one of my drawings. I think it's something weird, which makes it similar. I also at least try to make something you can relate to in some way, whether it’s about anxiety, depression, something like that.

If you say “I dreamed of you last night,” it's usually something more pleasant or romantic. This dream looks like it was a nightmare.

Yeah, I thought it was funny.

I think so too! What medium did you use?

It's a painting. It’s all watercolor, except for the black. That’s gouache.

I thought that was very dark black for watercolor.

Yeah, that's the only part where I have to find another paint. I always use watercolor, but the black wasn't enough, so I cheated a bit.

I think watercolor is a pretty dreamy paint.

I don't know why, but I just love working with it. It changes so easily, you can do whatever you want with it.

That’s cool. Was it very important to you to stay close to the prompt? Was that something you thought about?

Not really. I think it was more of just somewhere to start. And then it was taking me somewhere and I was just following, like the white rabbit, you know? It was just a point where I started and I followed what I was feeling.

Good! There's no right or wrong way to do that. How do you feel about deadlines?

I try to deal with them, but I'm not really good at it. But it’s okay, I guess. It really depends. If it's something I want to do, it wouldn’t really matter. So this was okay for me because I really wanted to do it and it was really interesting. I think it's a good idea, so it wasn't really a problem. Otherwise, it's kind of difficult for me.

Do you generally collaborate with other artists?

Not really, because I'm in art school, which is a lot. I'm in the year that’s preparing students for big universities, so we’re preparing for a lot of entrance exams. It’s all really individual at the moment.

Well this project automatically means you’re collaborating with two people: the one who made the song and the one who comes after you. Even though you’re not meeting them right now.

Yeah, that's cool.

Now that you have participated in this project, what is your advice for someone else who might do it?

Just have fun. I must say it was a really cool experience.

Oh good! I often hear that this is an opportunity for experimentation. Participants do something that they've never done before because the pressure is very low.

Yeah, that's perfect. You can just have fun.

Call Number: C69MU | C72VA.noJ

My name is Mélie Notari, or misty on social media, and I am currently studying art in Geneva. When it comes to my art, I like to create dreamlike worlds with disturbing elements, through which I talk about mental health and identity. I am also very inspired by music, especially punk rock and post punk genres. @misty_arrrt on IG