The four small drawings in this series exemplify some of Fowler’s perennial preoccupations: longing, yearning, loneliness, stardom and desire. They are drawn from a variety of sources intrinsic to their meanings, including film stills, press images and private photographs taken between friends. Each drawing asks the viewer to consider the practical consequences of their dreams.

Not Even in My Dreams (Lucia II)
Lucia II is the second time the artist has depicted the Italian actress Lucia Bosè. The image is based on a still from Michelangelo Antonioni’s 1950 feature Story of a Love Affair, in which the protagonist, whose past is littered with tragedy, marries an entrepreneur for his wealth — simultaneously rekindling a liaison with her previous lover, a struggling car salesman. In this recipe for emotional turmoil, wealth and beauty are pitted against the notion of true love.

Not Even in My Dreams (Dear Mr Gable)
Comprised of two separate images, the top half of Dear Mr Gable is a still from Les Enfants Du Paradis (1945) in which the infamous actress, Arletty, wistfully pronounces the title of the series as a whole: “Not even in my dreams…” Below, a teenage Judy Garland sits alone in her bedroom penning a love letter to the man of her dreams, Clark Gable. Herself a tragic icon, Garland becomes the conduit for a rich sense of irony in playing the role of the millions who dream of meeting their idols.

Not Even in My Dreams (A Portrait of Joan)
A Portrait of Joan shows a mature Joan Crawford advertising her autobiography. Crawford’s reputation was that of a ruthless woman who fought mercilessly to preserve her career and caché as a Hollywood star. In her own rendition, Fowler captures an unhinged frailty in her subject — an unusual fragility in the star renown for her ironclad demeanour.

Not Even in My Dreams (Myrna by Montgomery)
The last work in the quartet, Myrna by Montgomery, is based on a photograph of the ageing actress Myrna Loy, taken by fellow screen star Montgomery Clift. The peak of Myrna’s acting career spanned the 1930s and the 1940s; here she is depicted 20 years later by another actor, Clift himself lauded for his beauty and fated to a tragically early death. The image captures her beauty on the cusp of fading.