The Dreamers project began in 2008 as an outlet for creative expression among friends – done not for profit or validation but to fill a void within ourselves created by the frustration, excitement, and uncertainty emblematic of youth. Throughout the year of the project, each participant sent numerous art pieces to a post office box in Southern California. Documenting their dreams, both envisioned and realized, this was a tangible means of sharing something intangible – hopes and fears, achievements and setbacks.

At the end of the year, those of us who participated in the project came together from across the globe and immersed ourselves in what had literally become a trunk-load full of dreams. It was an opportunity to hold them up for each other and say, “this is something that came true for me. It is real. You can reach out and touch it if you wish.” It was a celebration.

This is a collection of portraits of the artists in The Dreamers project. They are the young architects of an old idea, and they are my closest friends. These photographs are my dreams. They carry the intimacies of memory and the grandeur of optimism. They are private moments – photographs taken behind closed doors, in old hiding spots, bedrooms, libraries, grocery stores, laundromats – all showcased here for the public eye, for they are also universal moments. These portraits capture the subject and the idea simultaneously – the dream and the dreamer. READ MORE

- Christopher Lowell