ABOUT
THE NEW DREAM BOOK AND PERSONAL JOURNAL — Michael Curtis Forster
PUBLICATION DESIGN | ART WORKING | PRINT MANAGEMENT
ISBN 9780473623463
ISBN 9780473623463
The New Dream Book and Personal Journal is the memoir of Michael Curtis Forster which tells the story of his life as the son of a bohemian screenwriting mother and well-known but absent film director for a father (Director of Casablanca). Following his life from being a young boy escaping pre-WWII Germany to America, it documents the journey of coming of age in a new country and the unique life that followed. Two books in one, after each chapter of the memoir is a section from Michael’s dream journal detailing these visions and his efforts to interpret it. Simultaneously responding and interpreting to these dreams, Michelanne Forster, Micheals daughter, produced a series of paintings that were each paired with a dream. Bound in the middle of the book is a small curated collection of family photographs scanned from family archives.
After his passing in 2021 Michelanne presented to me the manuscript written on a typewriter in the 1980s. Michelanne wished to add paintings and family photographs. Together we worked to curate a list of paintings which she proposed to pair with each dream. We sat together and discussed how to fuse Michael’s writing, Michelanne’s paintings, and various family photographs into one cohesive book. The resulting publications format facilitates an indirect conversation between a daughter and late father. It stands as a historical recording for family members about Michaeels life and those of other deceased family members. It also stands as an important first hand recording of Jewish relocation caused by World War Two.
Alongside friends and family, physical copies of The New Dream Book and Personal Journal were distributed to Holocaust museums including the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand. Copies are also stored in the New Zealand library.
After his passing in 2021 Michelanne presented to me the manuscript written on a typewriter in the 1980s. Michelanne wished to add paintings and family photographs. Together we worked to curate a list of paintings which she proposed to pair with each dream. We sat together and discussed how to fuse Michael’s writing, Michelanne’s paintings, and various family photographs into one cohesive book. The resulting publications format facilitates an indirect conversation between a daughter and late father. It stands as a historical recording for family members about Michaeels life and those of other deceased family members. It also stands as an important first hand recording of Jewish relocation caused by World War Two.
Alongside friends and family, physical copies of The New Dream Book and Personal Journal were distributed to Holocaust museums including the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand. Copies are also stored in the New Zealand library.