Between the states of wakefulness and sleep, semi-consciousness prompts unusual sensory experiences. Designers have always found inspiration in this mysterious period of time, which Klokers reflects with its
new Hypnagogic collection, consisting of two special models launched this autumn.
Hypnagogy is said to be the best of both worlds. In a state of deep relaxation, on the borderline between full consciousness and sleep, ready to fall into the arms of Morpheus, the mind roves, gallops like never before, moves from one subject to another without the slightest control... How long do these suspended moments last? A fraction of a second, several minutes? Do they happen every time you doze off? Several times a day or even night? Can they be provoked? And can they be recalled and remembered?
Two different waves, one brain
The term 'hypnagogy', the root of which is used in the name of the new Klokers collection, comes from the Greek words 'hypnos' and 'agôgos', which mean 'sleep' and 'leading' respectively. This state corresponds to the period of falling asleep, an indeterminate, vague, floating passage of time where elements linked to waking and sleeping are mixed. The spirit is both present and absent. Scientists have explained this strange moment after observing the presence of alpha waves, which are the main waves emitted when we are conscious, and the simultaneous presence of theta waves, which are specific to sleep, inside the brain.
Visions that draw on all the senses
This fortuitous cohabitation leads to unusual visions and sensations. Specialist literature speaks of a 'psychedelic state of consciousness'. Hypnagogy can also be seen as a kind of decompression chamber, an enchanted parenthesis, a space of freedom where the mind is at ease, yet we are still conscious and therefore able to remember. All ideas suddenly have free rein. Various and varied, unexpected and unprecedented connections occur as if by magic. We have the impression of visions that draw on all the senses. Beautiful colours and sublime images remain in the mind. If these become too prominent, or even frightening, it may be a more serious sleep disorder - hypnagogic hallucination - for which consultation should be sought. But let's get back to those unbridled visions that have guided creative people of all stripes and types since time immemorial.
Daydreams that we remember
The surrealist artist Salvador Dalí liked to call hypnagogy "sleep with a key". In the book 50 Magic Secrets , in which he discusses the different painting techniques he combines with great skill, the Spaniard adds: "We must solve the problem of ‘sleep without sleep’, the very essence of the dialectic of dreams, since this rest balances on the taut, invisible thread that separates sleep from wakefulness", referring to this second state that is at the origin of many of his works.
Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, also said that she found inspiration in a "waking dream" in the early hours of the morning. And explained in various interviews: "My eyelids were closed but my mental vision was very clear. “ Unlike deep sleep, where you dream and forget everything, the hypnagogic state allows you to remember the situations that occur in it... provided you don't fall completely asleep!
Like a journey into the phantasmagorical worlds
The dials of the Klok-01 and Klok-08 models in the
new Klokers Hypnagogic collection feature coloured numerals with a cut base, a stylistic reminder of airport information boards, where time ticks away in a long ballet of mechanical flaps that cascade down as the display is constantly refreshed to reflect aircraft departures. In order to be on time in the land of daydreams, the hypnagogic function is offered with small symbolic markers to limit the length of these formidable creative interludes to 5, 10, 15 or 20 minutes, depending on your metabolism and your schedule.
Texte : Frédéric Martin-Bernard
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