James Dowland

Collection 02 · Surreal collage

Soft
Absurdities

This collage collection turns everyday objects into surreal scenes. It uses humour and scale to explore freedom, play, connection, love, and ambition.

Breaking Loose, a surreal collage by James Dowland showing an older woman reaching for green and white balloons floating out of reach.
Breaking loose Reaching for the freedom to rise higher.
Secret Time, a surreal collage by James Dowland showing children climbing and playing inside a giant broccoli stalk while an adult watches.
Secret time A hidden world of play inside everyday life.
Glass Ceiling, an editorial collage by James Dowland showing women lifted by balloons but stopped beneath a barrier labelled 33% in top roles.
Glass ceiling Rising toward leadership, but still below the glass ceiling.
Romeo x Juliet, a surreal collage by James Dowland showing a worker on a cherry picker offering flowers to a woman on a high-rise balcony.
Romeo x Juliet High-rise romance.
Cat's Cradle, a surreal collage by James Dowland showing miniature green cats running across a web of string held between two hands.
Cat's cradle Moving carefully through a playful web of connections.
Sense of Anticlimax, a surreal collage by James Dowland showing tiny skiers descending the spiral of a giant soft-serve ice cream.
Sense of Anticlimax A downhill run ends in soft-serve anticlimax.
Eternal Gift, a surreal collage by James Dowland showing a crouching man waiting beneath a water drop from a tap attached to a sliced lemon.
Eternal gift Waiting patiently for one small drop to arrive.
Sacred Space, a surreal collage by James Dowland showing two people photographing a monumental egg-shaped building with a front door.
Sacred space A private place that invites attention but keeps its mystery.