Sanford, Elise Mitchell. Elise Mitchell Sanford. The Stuff of Dreams. August 25 - October 20, 1995.

Robert B. Menschel Gallery, No. 41, Syracuse University, 1995. Exhibit catalog. Fine, wraps, 24 pages. Portraits of people pretending to be famous people, including photographer Anne Noggle as Amelia Earhart.  

Elise Mitchell Sanford (1930–2018) was an American photographer and educator known for her exploration of aging, identity, and role-playing through fine art portraiture. Born in Burlington, Iowa, she earned degrees from Tulane University and later established her artistic practice and darkroom in Athens, Ohio. Sanford gained widespread acclaim for her landmark series The Stuff of Dreams, a cycle of selenium-toned silver gelatin portraits in which older adults, including herself, posed as iconic historical or cultural figures—such as Hedy Lamarr, Harriet Tubman, and Charlie Chaplin—to investigate how gesture, costume, and context influence perceptions of identity. Her work earned prestigious honors, including fellowships from the Ohio Arts Council and Arts Midwest, and was showcased in exhibitions across the country, such as at the Light Work / Robert B. Menschel Photography Gallery. Beyond her studio practice, she was dedicated to community arts, founding the Athens Photographic Project to foster creative expression through photography.

Elise Mitchell Sanford: The Stuff of Dreams is an exhibition catalogue published by the Robert B. Menschel Photography Gallery at Syracuse University. It documented a solo exhibition of Sanford’s work that ran in the autumn of 1995. The catalogue features an introductory essay alongside high-contrast, black-and-white photographic plates.

Key Overview and Objectives

• Exploring Identity Construction: The exhibition showcased a conceptual cycle of portraits designed to examine the fluid boundaries of personal identity. Sanford utilized the project to investigate how dress, context, and physical gesture shape both our internal self-perception and external societal labels.

• The Concept of the Alter Ego: The objective was to photograph subjects over the age of fifty—an age group often marginalized or made invisible in mainstream media—reimagined as historical, political, or pop-culture figures who heavily influenced their lives.

Core Themes and Visual Style

• The Subversion of Aging: By casting older adults in dynamic, fantastical roles, Sanford actively challenged traditional visual narratives surrounding the aging process. The imagery replaces societal notions of frailty or regression with agency, historical continuity, and creative play.

• Radical Role-Reversal: The black-and-white plates display striking, theatrical transformations. Notable examples from the series include women posing as Harriet Tubman or Hedy Lamarr, and subjects adopting male personas, such as a woman portraying Charlie Chaplin.

• Theatrical Realism: Sanford’s visual style relies on formal, selenium-toned silver gelatin portraiture. While the costumes and props are explicitly performative, the portraits are shot with direct lighting and unblinking clarity, capturing the genuine dignity, humor, and psychological depth of each participant.

Significance

The Stuff of Dreams serves as an important mid-1990s exploration of identity politics and representation within American photography. By documenting Sanford's unique blend of social commentary and theatrical portraiture, the Syracuse University publication highlights a crucial artistic effort to rewrite the visual lexicon of aging and self-determination.