I began this journey as a study in nostalgia and wonder, inspired by the faded magic of vintage playgrounds. What started as a search for lightness after a heavier period of work unfolded into something more expansive—playscapes where optimism and memory drifted together like songs on the wind. I set out to capture that fleeting feeling of endless possibility, the sense that the world might, at any moment, tilt open into something new.
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As with many of my series, the process began on Pinterest, where I built a visual language through mood boards—collecting fragments of vintage playground structures, color palettes, and moments of quiet surrealism. These references became a loose framework, guiding the tone without dictating the outcome.
The Designs
The drawings in this series remained intentionally minimal. I focused on the architectural forms of playground equipment—the curves, lines, and structures that suggest both movement and memory. These simplified environments became the stage on which the compositions could shift, tilt, and evolve.
The Poetry
As the visuals developed, I wrote accompanying prose to deepen the narrative. The poem took on a nursery rhyme cadence—playful, cyclical, and slightly uncanny—echoing the themes of childhood imagination while introducing a subtle sense of disorientation. It became both anchor and guide, reinforcing the emotional undercurrent of the series.
Maybe it was just a dream,
It’s just beyond my grasp.
If its not what it seems,
Was there a question asked?
If you show me your sky
I’ll know what was blue
Then we’ll see where to fly
Before we fall through
We are not where we started
We’re someplace else now
Can you feel we’ve departed
And do we know how?
If I knew the way
I would take us there
Though we must not stay
You need to be somewhere.
Maybe it was just a dream,
Just beyond our grasp.
Round and round we spin
To the start at last.
– L. Kell
The Photography
The photographic elements were gathered from a range of places and moments. Many images were captured at the Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier, where long exposures introduced motion and blur, bending time into something more fluid. Additional source material came from travels—Alaska, the Dallas Arboretum, aquariums—as well as my immediate surroundings. These fragments of the real world were later recontextualized, becoming components of something less fixed and more dreamlike.
Compositing & Image Construction
Through a layered process of compositing, photographic elements were meticulously integrated into the drawn environments. Light, shadow, and structure were manipulated to create visual tension—spaces that felt both familiar and unstable. This phase became a dialogue between control and discovery, where each adjustment revealed new possibilities. The work evolved through constant iteration, moving through unexpected directions before finding its balance.
It was during this evolution, around my birthday in August and coinciding with the Lionsgate portal, that the series fully opened. The imagery shifted—tulips turned upside down, flamingos rotated beyond their natural orientation, and the carousel emerged as a central, unifying force. The compositions became more dynamic, more disorienting, and more aligned with the core of the work.
These images are where the series started.
Iteration & Refinement
The design process unfolded as an extended exploration—testing variations, following visual threads, and working through countless iterations. Each piece required a careful balance: pushing far enough to create tension and unease, while holding onto a sense of cohesion and wonder. It was a process of entering and re-entering the work, allowing it to reveal itself gradually.
Here are just a few of the endless possibilities.
Final Collection
The series ultimately resolved into a collection of immersive playscapes—worlds that invite entry while subtly destabilizing perception. The works asked the viewer to linger in that space: sometimes dizzying, sometimes disorienting, but always infused with awe.
This is where it landed.
Video & Expanded Work
Building on my previous motion-based work, I created a video piece to accompany the collection. Unlike earlier cinemagraphs, this work brought together multiple images and the full poem into a continuous visual narrative. Short teaser videos were also developed for each verse, extending the experience beyond the still image and into time-based storytelling.
