Cosmic Stream

(2020-2021)

How to dream with mind and matter?

“Dora Lionstone's cosmic imagery is activated by the power of daydreaming, a habit she found herself increasingly drawn towards as the pandemic-stricken world began its gradual lockdown. To enter the celestial dreamscapes of Lionstone's latest project, Cosmic Stream, is to momentarily indulge in an escape from the banalities of the everyday world: forms of unidentifiable origin, beautiful in their elementary nature, drift through an unnamable landscape, free from the shackles of conventional interpretations.“
- Sophie Beerens, GUP Magazine

'Cosmic Stream' is a multimedia project that explores the inner world of the mind in relation to the mysteries of the universe. It visualizes an ambiguous cosmos that follows a stream of consciousness, inspired by scientific paradoxes, myths, and the concept of cosmic consciousness. The act of daydreaming provides the imagination for a fluid world in which various forms and ideas flow into a multifaceted visual archive.

The images result from different experiments with photographic material, made with collages and analog or digital transformations or the staging of self-made sculptures and maquettes. Confusing the sense of scale and origin, the images challenge the perception of reality and the anthropocentric view while offering new possibilities for association and coexistence.

The project consists of a photography installation, animations, paintings, and a book. The essay “The First Breath of the Earth”, exists as a video and as a poster within the book. Together, the various elements form a surreal cosmos that shifts and blends multiple perspectives and techniques, inviting the viewer to wonder and wander through a stream of consciousness of poetic science fiction.

Exhibited at FOAM 2020, Droog 2020, Gerrit Rietveld Academie 2020, Haze Gallery 2020, Artphy 2021, murmur 2021 and Vrij Paleis 2022.

Read the interview with GUP Magazine about the project here →

See the book of the project.