Phoenix Dream (Ho-o no yume)

"Phoenix Dream" (Ho-o no yume) evokes the mythological bird of Japanese and Chinese tradition — the ho-o, a creature of paradise that appears only in times of peace and whose rare sightings are interpreted as omens of great fortune. A dream of the phoenix would carry the same augural quality as a real sighting: a vision of the auspicious, of transformation and renewal. Binnie's print likely renders the legendary bird in the sumptuous plumage of Japanese decorative tradition, the dream quality suggested by soft atmospheric color.