Published by Prestel and building on the sensual style of her previous book, The Last Days of Summer, photographer Akila Berjaoui turns her lens toward the timeless allure of the Mediterranean – its radiant light, sparkling coastlines, and bodies in harmony with their surroundings. The Possible Dream is a visual call to slow down, return to our primitive nature and a state of being free from the judgement of the digital age.
Shot entirely on film and rendered in warm, grainy tones, the book follows Berjaoui’s signature analogue style, blending documentary immediacy with a painterly sense of composition. Captured over five years during her travels to iconic beach destinations such as the Greek Cyclades, the Balearic Islands, and the coastlines of Italy and Tunisia, this visually rich series highlights the elemental connection between water, skin, and light.
Rooted in nostalgia and a reverence for nature, these sun-washed, full-bleed images encourage the viewer to slow down and tune in to the environment. The book serves as a tactile narrative, an attempt to return to a simpler and truer way of being.
Her subjects, ranging from close friends to perfect strangers, exude a quiet confidence, their beauty revealed through gesture, shadow and atmosphere. It is an exploration of the power of observation; a practice that keeps the artist present and invites the reader to savour each moment. The Possible Dream invites readers on a contemplative journey into a world where we can live in peace, shedding the cumbersome noise of the modern world.
Akila Berjaoui is an Australian-born photographer based in Paris, best known for her sensual photographs which often feature sun, sand and water—or a combination of the three. Growing up in both Beirut, Lebanon and Australia, she spent her summer holidays in Northern New South Wales, where she developed an affinity for the beach. Shooting on analogue cameras, her work has been featured in several prestigious fashion magazines. Her first book, The Last Days of Summer, was published by Prestel in 2017.
Akila Berjaoui: The Possible Dream
Published by Prestel
ISBN: 978-3-7913-9406-0
£35.00
www.prestel.com
