Our Story

Early in 2016

an amazing idea brought several photographers together in a project amply dubbed The Traveling Dress Project. As creatives, each photographer was fascinated with one another’s different points of view, so they decided to see what would happen if each of them had the opportunity to use the exact same dress to make their unique visions come to life. Each photographer had one week with the dress; shooting it with their own specific style and creative vision, before mailing it off to the next person. In an effort to avoid creatively influencing the vision of one another, the participants agreed to one stipulation. They would refrain from sharing the images until all participants had the opportunity to shoot with the dress. The dress traveled nearly around the world between the original seven participants. Each very different in shooting style and voice.

Fast forward to 2017

and the original traveling dress participants were at it again. Except this time adding a little twist which would allow an infinite number of participants and the capability to grow exponentially. Instead of a yearly project, it was expanded into a collective of photographers. Each of the original 7 photographers started their own groups, each with their own traveling dress or object, and each with their own 7-10 participants. The thought was that each year, each person who participates in the Traveling Dress would create their own group of 7-10 photographers the following year and the traveling could continue year after year. 

Hence, The Traveling Dress Collective was born.

In 2016 there was 1 dress and 7 photographers. In 2017 there are multiple dresses and upwards of 68 participants. Each with their own individual creative vision and voice.

We are The Traveling Dress Collective

1 Dress.
7 Photographers.
A Trip Around the World.

“To me, photography is an art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place… I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.” — Elliott Erwitt