Jessie Luke:
A Journey to Wonderland
February 17 – April 15, 2023
Zoe Golloway Gallery & Sarah K. Newberry Gallery
Jessie Luke, a fine arts photographer based in Jacksonville, FL, retells the well-loved classic of Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland” in 25 images. Inspired by John Tenniel’s original drawing illustrations, the artist used handcrafted props, costumes, masks, and building structures to create the set and Carroll’s iconic characters like the Cheshire Cat. Luke then captured her photographs with a plastic toy camera, called the Holga, which uses black and white 120 films and is known for its low-fidelity aesthetic. The simplicity of this “cheap” plastic camera produces unpredictable results and unique effects like intense vignetting and distortion, allowing Luke to convey the dreamlike, unreal qualities of Alice’s journey down the rabbit hole.
Luke states, “I wanted to compose images that represented Alice’s own imagination, by producing photographs that dramatically convey an illusion like the same way we see and feel when we dream.” A Journey to Wonderland is her third Holga series, and her photographs have been displayed at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Jacksonville. Jessie Luke also received honorable mentions at the Worldwide Photography Gala, and her work has been exhibited across nine states and three different countries.