Ben De Vries

As a photographer, I'm always searching for the hidden stories lurking in everyday environments. Through my lens, I see not only reality—I also see the intangible, the unconscious layer that permeates the world around us. My work explores the boundaries between tangible reality and the abstract, dreamlike worlds that exist in our thoughts and desires.
For me, photography is a way to connect the familiar and the unknown. It's my attempt to transform everyday objects, people, and places into something that feels both recognizable and unfamiliar. My images are a fusion of the realistic and the surreal, using playful manipulations of light, shadow, and composition to create moments of stillness that can be simultaneously dreamlike and unsettling.
In my work, I search for those fleeting moments where the line between dream and reality blurs. A hallway in a house that seems to multiply, a window that returns the world in alienating colors, or an object that seems to defy the laws of gravity. These images are not only reflections of the world as we know it, but also explorations of our desires, fears, and the unconscious.
By experimenting with shutter speeds, reflections, and abstraction, I attempt to create a sense of alienation, like a ...

Nieuwe Akademie en Vrije Academie in The Netherlands, but mainly self-taught.

ZIMICH Theatre, December 2024, Utrecht, The Netherlands
Galery Waterbolk, July 2024, Utrecht, The Netherlands
Town Hall, June 2024, Utrecht, The Netherlands
Galery Zaansgroen, May 2024, Zaandam, The Netherlands
ZonMw, December 2022, The Hague, The Netherlands
National Art Days, November 2022, Gorinchem, The Netherlands
Galery Waterbolk, August 2022, Utrecht, The Netherlands
ZonMw,