Martina Geiger‑Gerlach

(The Parliament Dreams -
A Poetic Image of the European Parliament)

Could a single image revitalize the much-evoked “Dream of Europe”? A romantic ideal showing the elected representatives of Europe, alongside the Council and the Commission, dreaming shoulder to shoulder? The photomontage depicts a reconstructed plenary hall in Strasbourg: all 818 participants have their eyes closed, turning their gaze inward.

The individual portraits were captured in Strasbourg from the visitors' gallery during sessions (October 2019 to February 2020), then isolated and reintroduced to their regular seats within the empty plenary chamber, which had been photographed from the speaker's lectern. This process continued until a visually striking and contemplative plenary assembly emerged.

The “Dream of Europe” usually implies a utopian wish, though interpreting it as a daydream or a sleeping dream fits just as well here. According to dream research, uncontrollable dreaming—even the briefest suspension of consciousness—is fundamental to the brain's neural networking. It is essential for thinking independently and creatively, for feeling empathy, and for acting accordingly. A parliament tasked with legislating the framework for the “Dream of Europe” must therefore, by virtue of its very office, dream from time to time. The fact that such a dreaming parliament might, at first glance, appear naive or populist is a calculated choice intended to spark discussion.

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