There is no light without shadow. In every image, every brushstroke, every captured frame of our human experience, the dance between illumination and darkness defines what we see—and what we feel. For our 81st special edition, Collect Art invites readers into this eternal interplay: “Shadow & Light.” Art, at its core, is an act of revelation. Yet every revelation contains concealment; every clarity carries mystery. Across continents and cultures, artists and photographers in

Shona Raine is passionate about storytelling. Weaving together narrative, poetry and collage to explore memory, folklore, and the quiet sovereignty available to us when communing with other realms. Shona’s mapping of personal stories and lineage archives their intimate exploration of vanishing lore. Mixing media and disciplines allows Shona to create work that reminds their tired hands how to get free, crafting worlds where all beings can bloom and belong.

In relation to exploring her own complex identities as well as the cultural identities specific to our contemporary society, Laura Candet facilitates a conversation between the mental diffusion encountered in various mental illnesses and the relationship between them and society. These discussions are extremely important, especially nowadays, when so much emphasis is placed on productivity and capitalism and less on mental health. In relation to identity, the fluidity of pers

Jingyun Guan is a London-based Chinese artist whose practice spans painting, performance, and installation. Guan graduated from the University of Arts London with an MA in Fine Art Drawing. Guan's work employs various media and materials to explore themes of personal mythology, feminist perspectives, and queer identity. Using materials such as wax, tights, cotton wool, and silicone, Guan creates tactile forms that evoke both vulnerability and resilience. These pieces investig

Yu Yu (Spencer) is a London-based interdisciplinary artist whose practice is rooted in her background in behavioural science. She is dedicated to transforming intangible psychological phenomena, such as cognitive biases and personal memories, into tangible visual works. Through her mixed-media collage practice, she explores themes of identity and personal exploration, examining the friction between our internal states and external realities. Her work serves as not only a reco

Rahima Schwenkbeck is a historian and street photographer whose work explores language, culture, and environment through the everyday signs that shape human experience. Her practice spans over two decades and more than one hundred countries, combining historical inquiry with visual storytelling.

Anna Bajelidze is a 23-year-old interdisciplinary artist from Georgia, currently based in Germany. She studies Visual Communication at the Art School of Kassel, where her practice focuses on analog photography and moving image. Her works have been presented in student exhibitions and group shows in Kassel. She currently works in the university’s photography studio, where she develops film and produces gelatin silver prints. Alongside this, she is engaged in several research p

Alison Elizabeth Manning lives in a small village On the outskirts of York. She studied design for Photography in college and has remained deeply engaged with art ever since. Her creative Journey has included working as a graphic designer and participating in community art projects supporting vulnerable adults. An avid solo traveller and self confessed creative free-spirit, Alison draws Inspiration from the cities she explores, using her experiences to Inform her true passion

In The Guards, Jan Wurm brings together paintings and drawings that explore the subtle tensions between protection and vulnerability, authority and uncertainty. Her figures stand at thresholds — between spaces, between people, between acts of seeing and being seen.

Tima Aalizadeh is a London-based printmaker whose practice focuses on intaglio processes including etching, aquatint, mezzotint, and drypoint. She holds an MA in Printmaking from Middlesex University and a BA in Graphic Design from the University of Guilan, Iran. In 2025, Aalizadeh’s work was shown in the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts, London; Small but Mighty at Bankside Gallery, London; a solo exhibition in Deal; a group exhibition at Filet Gallery, London;

Lu Xingchen is currently pursuing a degree in Visual Communication at the Royal College of Art in London. Her practice encompasses collage, photography, and digital media, exploring the relationship between time, memory, and human perception within contemporary contexts. Through layered imagery and poetic juxtapositions, she seeks to examine the resonance between individual experience and social reality.

Sadaf Gharazi is a 23-year-old Iranian photographer currently based in Isfahan, Iran. She is a senior student of Photography at the University of Art in Isfahan. Before university, she studied Photographic Arts in high school - a program combining photography and graphic design - and earned her diploma in that field. Her works often explore social and contemporary themes, focusing particularly on the representation and presence of women in Iran's patriarchal society. Through

The series Shadow & Light draws on my experiences in East Africa, where intense sunlight, strong contrasts, and the warmth of the environment have shaped both my perception and colour palette. Regular visits to Kenya refine this visual sensibility and inform my understanding of light and form. In Shadow & Light , I explore the balance of opposites - how one cannot exist without the other. Together, shadow and light define form, reveal structure, and intensify colour. This to

Molly is a photographer originally from Cheshire, now based in Sheffield. Her work is rooted in observing and capturing the quiet beauty of the everyday, focusing on the harmony between light, shadow, and movement — an ongoing practice in the art of noticing and observation. Driven by a passion for travel and human connection, she finds meaning in sharing small, spontaneous moments with people she meets along the way. Her images often reflect a sense of presence and intimacy,

Miriam Habibe is an emerging Welsh-based artist of BAME South Asian heritage whose creative journey embodies resilience, identity, and self-discovery. After years devoted to parenthood and a full-time career, she has returned to her artistic roots, crafting deeply expressive works that bridge tradition and modern experimentation. Drawing inspiration from craft forms like weaving, she merges abstraction and mixed media techniques, forging an artistic voice that is uniquely her

In Eden in Eclipse explores a quiet struggle between shadow and light. A single lit apple becomes a small sun in the hand, while the serpent rests like memory—suggesting inheritance as much as danger. By keeping the face and body in deep shadow, the image asks viewers to meet it halfway, to decide what to reveal and what to keep hidden. I’m interested in the moment a choice becomes visible, and how one highlight can hold both tenderness and threat. Oluwatobi Ogundunsin (b. La

Lewis Andrews moved to Leeds in 2016 to study a BA(Hons) in Fine Art at Leeds Arts University. After graduating in 2019, Lewis continued to work in Leeds. In 2022, Lewis completed his Postgraduate Fine Arts Degree also at Leeds Arts University, graduating with a Masters Degree in the Creative Arts. During his Master’s Degree, Lewis’s practice became deeply focused on the methodology of translating information and data from sources within science into artworks. Lewis has conti

Known for her strong contrasts and contrasting subjects, Laura Candet expresses her artistic ideas through complex artworks in which shadow and light not only take on a visual analytical role, but also convey profound contrasts of identity. With her ever-changing identities and borderline personality, the artist uses her "black and white" thinking in the creative process to visually reflect her state of mind. In her shadows and lights, Laura Candet exposes a fragmented identi