“If one is lucky, a solitary fantasy can totally transform one million realities.”
—Maya Angelou
Fantasy is that incredible capacity to believe
that monkeys can fly, trees can think and talk,
and humans can have super powers. When
we close our eyes at night we often hope to
escape into a fantasy world and dream. When
we dream we can conjure, modify, and develop
fantastic environments, circumstances, characters, and dialogues. When we awaken, these
scenarios can be expressed visually, verbally,
musically, theatrically, and cinematically. They
each encourage us to consider possibilities that
dwell beyond reality and personal experience.
By escaping into a world of imagination we
can address life’s deeper, more serious considerations from a different perspective.
Artists make dreams reality. Most artists are
active, imaginative explorers who creatively
engineer materials, processes, and ideas that
compel us to consider alternative universes
and embrace the surreal. We peer closer to
examine and contemplate the delicately drawn,
intricate details of Remedios Varo’s Exploration
of the Source of the Orinoco River, or shake
our heads in bemusement at the absurdity of
Sandy Skoglund’s The Green House. Exaggera-
tion of proportion, irony, and contemporary
moral issues are evident in the storied works
of Trenton Doyle Hancock. Just beyond reality,
popular culture and digital technology con-
verge in Cao Fei’s virtual utopias.
