Katherine KY Cheng

Eyes Open looks at the dreams that we have, both awake and asleep. Across many languages, the word for our unconscious imaginations and waking aspirations are the same, intertwining the two. Where do dreams come from, and why do we have them? What is the overlap, and how do they drive us? 

In Traditional Chinese, the word for “dreams” is written as 夢 – with 卝 as eyebrows, 罒 as eyes, 冖 as a cloth, and 夕 meaning the end of the day with references to a crescent moon. In Simplified Chinese, it is written as 梦 – which represents a forest in the evening. 

This series examines some of these dreams we have, an interpretation of our everyday life with a slight surreal edge, echoing the feeling that we have when asleep. A circular lens has been used as a reference to the eye, mimicking the perspective of seeing the world from within. Journeying through a coastal forest in the evening, a walk balancing between two worlds.

All images were created along the perimeters of Toronto Island over one weekend, during an Inception retreat at Artscape Gibraltar.


Katherine KY Cheng is a photographer and video journalist, based between Hong Kong and Toronto. With a background in International Relations and Critical Development Studies, she’s driven to explore themes of the climate crisis, social resistance and diasporic cultural identity. Most recently, her work has appeared in the Globe and Mail, CBC and the Wall Street Journal. She’s a member of Room Up Front, a BIPOC mentorship programme for emerging photojournalists. Her work has been exhibited across Nepal, South Africa, and Hong Kong. 

Contact the artist directly for information on purchasing.

Contact:  katherinekycheng@gmail.com
Website: www.katherinekycheng.com
IG: @katherinekycheng

May 6th to May 28th, 2023
Artscape Youngplace, 180 Shaw St, Toronto
Hallway Galleries, 2nd and 3rd floors

Artist Talk and Tour
Saturday, May 13th, 2023
11am & 1pm