Is sleep deprivation stifling our creativity?

British contemporary artist Claire Luxton has today unveiled her latest artwork ‘Right Before We Wake’ at FRAMELESS London, the UK’s largest permanent immersive art experience.

Inspired by Surrealist art and ancient dream philosophies, the new show invites visitors to explore the emotional landscape of the sleeping mind and question our modern sleep habits

Claire Luxton’s latest piece, ‘Right Before We Wake,’ sponsored by Adobe, explores the surreal, in-between moments that occur just before we awaken.

The show, which lasts the duration it takes to fall into non-REM sleep (10 minutes), invites viewers to contemplate the magic of dreams and the restorative power of sleep.

To support the new artwork, FRAMELESS has researched the UK’s sleep routines, exploring the impact of modern habits on our sleep, creativity, and mental state.

The average UK adult gets just 6.1 hours of sleep per night, far below the recommended 8 hours. Among 16-24 year-olds, this drops to a staggering 5.76 hours per night.

While dreams have long been a source of artistic inspiration, Luxton’s show takes visitors on a journey through three stages of the sleep cycle - the transitional phase, light sleep, and REM sleep, where eyes move rapidly behind closed lids.

Through this experience, she encourages visitors to reconsider their bedtime rituals, highlighting the hidden cost of poor sleep on creativity, rest, and well-being.

Even as a sleep-deprived nation, moments right before sleep and upon waking are some of the most powerful sources of creativity, with over 30% of people reporting they experience their most creative thoughts at these times. 1 in 10 people have their most creative thoughts when they are asleep.

Despite this, research suggests we are stifling creative potential with our sleep habits. Over 2 in 5 (40%) check their phones immediately upon waking, increasing to over half (52%) among 16-24 year-olds. Similarly, half (49%) of 16-24 year-olds engage in these scrolling habits in the moments before they sleep, along with almost 1 in 3 (28%) of the general population.

It’s clear that there’s a lingering effect of our digital habits on our subconscious minds, with 70% of night-time scrollers saying their dreams are influenced by what they consume.

What's more concerning, however, is that 16% of them admit to having negative dreams specifically relating to content they’ve consumed.

In ‘Right Before We Wake’, Luxton’s modern-day immersive, Surrealist landscape is bathed in blue, green, and purple colors that evoke tranquillity, growth, and introspection.

Blue, known to evoke deep relaxation, has graced the works of artists like Yves Klein, whose Blue Monochrome captures the meditative power of the color.

Green, symbolizing balance and spiritual renewal, can be traced back to the Renaissance, when it was often used to represent growth and healing. Purple, connected to introspection, ties into sleep's creative and restorative qualities, offering a space for emotional clarity.

Claire Luxton said: “In this ever-shifting, relentless world, where time often slips through our fingers, understanding the profound impact of sleep and dreams has become essential. They are not mere pauses in our waking lives, but vital moments of healing and self-discovery.

My work invites the viewer to explore the deep connection between rest and renewal, drawing on timeless symbols like the Sleeping Venus and botanicals like anemones to evoke a space for introspection and emotional protection.”

So what are these habits doing to us? The findings reveal how today’s digital distractions are affecting both our rest and our ability to think clearly and creatively.

Those who frequently consume digital content, including news and social media, during these transitional moments report increased feelings of anxiety and stress, with 1 in 4 (25%) of 18-24 year-olds feeling particularly impacted.

With over 30% of people aged 25-34 saying a poor night's sleep makes them less creative during the day, and almost half the population (47%) feeling less motivated and more irritable (43%), Claire Luxton’s work asks viewers to pause, disconnect, and rethink the impact of their evening and morning routines, and to even question the sources behind their own dreams.

Speaking on the research, Heather Darwall-Smith, UKCP Psychotherapist & Sleep Specialist and author of ‘How to be Awake (So You Can Sleep Through the Night)’ commented: “In a world that asks us to be constantly alert, sleep is one of the few places we can let go.

But the research is clear: we’re not mentally or emotionally giving ourselves the conditions to rest. Whether it’s the pull of the phone, the pressure to perform, or the habit of going to bed with the whole world in our hands, we forget that sleep isn’t just about energy. It’s about perspective, creativity, and resilience.

We don’t just need more sleep – we need gentler ways of entering and exiting it.”

‘Right Before We Wake’ by Claire Luxton invites visitors to consider what happens on the precipice of sleep.

The captivating new artwork mirrors Surrealism through a contemporary lens and lands alongside a complete reimagining of FRAMELESS’ existing Gallery ‘Beyond Reality’, which houses immersive reimagined artworks by Odilon Redon, Salvador Dalí, Hieronymus Bosch, Max Ernst, and many more.

As one of the innovative artists represented by MTArt Agency, Luxton’s work demonstrates their mission to bring forward-thinking, impactful art to a global audience.

The new show is part of FRAMELESS’ residencies program, which has been offering a platform to emerging digital artists from the diverse and vibrant art community since 2023, showcased in its fifth ‘Blank Canvas’ Gallery.