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Dreams and Imaginings
Prints of most of these images are available for purchase. Please inquire.
All photographs are the copyright of the individual artists and may not be reproduced without their permission.
Juror's Statement
The rich and wonderful world of Dreams and Imaginings is one I’ve become intimately familiar with over the past twenty years, so it was a great honor to experience how other artists realize this elusive realm.
Images included in the gallery and online exhibition span from exploring flights of fancy to dismantling the most chilling corners of ones mind. Universally, these images are deeply rooted in symbolism, metaphor, myth, and reimagined memories. Many of these selections successfully tap into the world of making the impossible, possible and at times they open our eyes to an existence we could have never imagined.
It was an extremely difficult task to narrow down selections for the gallery exhibition and online exhibition to just thirty-five and thirty images respectively. There were so many spectacular images that I wished I could have included. I commend and thank every artist who submitted. Thank you for allowing me to experience your unique world.
As a juror my first response is an instinctual and emotional one so an artists’ ability to effectively express an engaging personal narrative are elements I migrate toward. While technical merits are equally as important to a guttural response, a select group of images in this impressive collection married those attributes seamlessly. Congratulations to all the selected artists. I commend each of you on your magnificent visions.
Susan Burnstine
Call for Entries
“I think there is an element of magic in photography — light, chemistry, precious metals — a certain alchemy. You can wield a camera like a magic wand almost. Murmur the right words and you can conjure up proof of a dream.” Keith Carter
Dreams and imagination provide fertile ground for photographers to delve into self-reflection, create a story, or share a vision. There is an element of magic that unites all such work, along with an unusual capacity to connect with the viewer in deeply profound ways. At their best, these images seem to arise from a collective consciousness we all share.
For this exhibition, we seek images that arise from within, that may be deeply personal, fantastical, beautiful or disturbing. All captures and processes are welcome.
We are very pleased that Susan Burnstine will jury and this exhibit. She will select up to 35 images for exhibition in the Middlebury gallery, and up to an additional 40 images for our Online gallery. All selected images will be published in the exhibit catalog.
Information about our printing service and free matting and framing here.
Banner image: Jim McKinnis
Home page thumbnail: Rebecah Thompson
Click to enlarge image.
About the Juror
Susan Burnstine is a fine art and commercial photographer based in Los Angeles. She is represented in galleries across the world, widely published throughout the globe, conducts workshops worldwide and writes a monthly column for Black & White Photography Magazine (UK).
Susan is avidly creating an idiosyncratic and deeply personal visual landscape. Initially she sought to find a way to portray her dream-like visions entirely in-camera, rather than with post-processing digital manipulations. To achieve this, she has created twenty-one handmade film cameras and lenses that are frequently unpredictable and technically challenging. The cameras are primarily made out of plastic, vintage camera parts, and random household objects, with single-element lenses molded from plastic and rubber. Learning to overcome their extensive optical limitations required Burnstine to rely on instinct and intuition—the same tools that are key when attempting to interpret dreams.
Susan has two sold-out monographs: Within Shadows (2011, Charta) and Absence of Being (2016, Damiani) Her prints are available through a number of galleries in the US and abroad.