Jacob's Dream 

Curator: The immediate impression I get is one of vivid colour contrasts creating a sense of fantastical landscape. There’s an element of naive charm here. Editor: You’ve described it perfectly. This is a painting entitled “Jacob’s Dream” by Jean David. Although undated, it employs the medium of paint to depict a dreamscape rich with figuration and the influences of Modernism. Curator: It certainly grabs your attention with its sharp geometric shapes and bold rendering. The figure at the bottom is almost subsumed by the scene, seemingly blending into the verdant space of grass and shrubbery. Are we meant to view this figure as being the dreamer within Jacob’s Dream? Editor: That’s precisely the interpretive hook, I think. One of the key questions this painting poses relates to our understanding of the spiritual in art, specifically whether Jean David invites the viewer to explore an individual experience—dreams—or comment more broadly on our public understandings of faith and art, blurring the distinction between public belief and the personal exploration thereof. The angular shapes feel both very contemporary and also rather biblical in their rendering. Curator: Indeed, I see that at the heart of this dream is the artist's depiction of divinity; an element that one could view in light of both Modernism’s search for novelty and art history’s enduring use of spiritual motifs. Are there particular influences that we know of when it comes to this work? Editor: Given the art historical interest in this kind of representation, it invites connections to the mural art movements that flourished throughout the early 20th century and the traditions of so-called ‘naïve art’ too. This may also gesture towards the political role of religious painting in society. It raises profound questions about who can depict sacred narratives and where this imagery can, or should, circulate within public space. Curator: Fascinating. I’m especially struck by the colours and composition. There's an intentionally flattened picture plane, which feels quite striking despite the artist's employment of traditional themes. The result is oddly modern. Editor: Agreed. These juxtapositions that span figuration, landscape, spirituality, and political questions, invite many possible paths for an aesthetic journey through “Jacob’s Dream.” Hopefully we have inspired that in our listeners today!