Artist Sonia Melnikova-Raich is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of these photographs. From the series ‘Waking Dreams’. To see Sonia’s body of work, click on any image.

In the early days, photographic images were sometimes called “waking dreams.” There seemed to be a certain magic involved, some even believed the camera was capable of capturing the soul of the subject. When photography became commonplace, it came to be regarded as an accurate depiction of reality, with special appreciation for technically perfect pictures. Creating mysterious dream-like images that transcend objective reality has become a domain of pictorial photography. The Waking Dreams series explores the poetry and mystique of low-light environments, capturing fleeting moments, barely visible, ambiguous or disappearing things. Feeling a strong affinity with the Japanese philosophy and aesthetic of wabi sabi, with its focus on transience and impermanence, I believe that photography is the best medium to express these concepts, as each photograph is inherently an image of disappearance, a reflective connection to the past forever stamped by time.

Short Bio

Sonia Melnikova-Raich was born in Moscow, where she was trained as an artist and architect, and her approach to photography is shaped by her background in painting and architecture. She has been living in San Francisco since 1987 and has been exhibiting her photography since 2005. She has several solo exhibits and has been among the winners in many national and international competitions. Her photography has been featured in professional photography journals, and she is listed in 100 Hot Photographers by YourDailyPhotograph.com, the project by Duncan Miller Gallery in Los Angeles, an internationally recognized gallery specializing in 20th and 21st Century fine art photography.

All images and text © Sonia Melnikova-Raich