Happy Sleepies
Handmade and embroidered one of a kind textile sculpture. Since 2001


Happy Sleepies look like they have smiling eyes and upside down their eyes look sealed with sleep.
Whether happily proactive or sleepily withdrawn, they are avatars of our freedom to choose.


"We who lived in concentration camps can remember those who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken... but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
– Victor Frankl

Happy Sleepies are enlightened beings because they always remember their freedom to choose how to be. They can zoom around in excited high energy or dream in restful slumber or choose to feel anything in between whenever they want. An example of an alternative to the happy-sad dichotomy.

Instead of bouncing between states of existence imposed by the outside world, everyone can generate from inside a choice of at least a proactive or reserved attitude towards external life circumstances. We can all learn to be internally, emotionally grounded and in that way always have a sense of agency in our lives.

The first Happy Sleepy was made in 2005 based on a drawing by Marc Ngui.
The pattern has been perfected over the years to be ever curvier and bouncier and full of energy.

Making Happy Sleepies



We make things according to rules of luxury and sustainability, shunning waste. For example, the fabrics we use are very high quality, often 100% silk brocade or wool and yet usually come from mill end rolls or from industry cut offs. The designs are sometimes the result of piecing together scraps from our own work - little is wasted and the result is unique.

Happy Sleepies in Exhibition
The soft sculptures have appeared in multiple Canadian and international exhibitions. They are included in all our larger installations as avatars of will and free choice




Happy Sleepy Soft Sculpture Gallery
A small selection of the 100+ textile sculptures made since 2001.


























