Chasing Dragons

As a child, Bill Hayward traversed thousands of miles of American highway, peering out the window from the backseat of his father's 1940 Chevy. On the road, Bill and his sister, Janet, embarked upon an epic journey of the imagination, making believe they were "chasing dragons" through vast, shifting landscapes. This playful, childhood undertaking has had a profound impact on the life of the prolific, multimedia artist. For more than fifty years, Hayward has endeavoured to bring light, through his art, to the strange and wondrous forms that lie hidden beneath the surface of things, revealing what is left behind when conventions fade away. In the artist's own words, "I inhaled the essence and enchantment of play, permission, and possibility... I came to understand that the truly meaningful will be experienced outside the known world of fact and frame." Presented here is a stunning visual autobiography, chronicling more than five decades of artistic vision. Arranged in five acts, Chasing Dragons traces the evolution of Hayward's work from traditional portraiture to increasingly abstract and altered images, figurative paintings, dance, performance, and film. Join Hayward on this creative odyssey, exploring the fundamental elements of humankind and probing the mystery the lies at the core of your own being. Artist Bill Hayward works in a diverse array of media, including photography, film, painting, music, sculpture, and dance. In all cases, Hayward's work is primarily inspired by the drama of living forms. To these ends, his work explores the human body - its outward appearance and innermost feelings - often entering territories of vulnerability and emotional risk. Hayward's work has been exhibited in galleries and performance centers across the United States, as well as in France and Germany, including Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College (Allentown, Pennsylvania), Fashion Night Out (New York City), Center for Performance Research (Brooklyn, New York), The Wynwood Art Fair and The Art Live Fair (Miami, Florida), The Tribeca Grand (New York City). Hayward is co-founder of The Maine Photographic Workshops (now the Maine Media Workshops), wherein he taught Master Class Workshops in portraiture and the creative process. He has also taught Master Classes at the International Center of Photography (New York City), YC; Palm Beach Photographic Workshops (West Palm Beach, Florida), and the Art Kane Photo Workshops (Cape May, New Jersey). The artist s previous books of photography include Cat People (Doubleday, 1978) and Bad Behavior (Rizzoli, 2000). Hayward lives and in works in New York City and Montana.