New York-based curator, writer, and art dealer James Salomon is immortalizing the inner lives of today’s great artists. On August 13, Salomon will drop his second-ever DayDream book. Forty-four creatives, including art stars like Ai Weiwei and Maren Hassinger, fill its pages. At a moment where legions are growing disillusioned with the art market, recentering on the reveries of creatives may hold solutions.

“This has nothing to do with the art world or art market,” Salomon told me of his project over Facetime, “but it does have to do with the world.”

The DayDream series first took shape last spring. The Berkshire Botanical Garden had asked Salomon to curate that summer’s group exhibition. While listening to “Daydream” by The Lovin’ Spoonful as his mind drifted, Salomon realized he’d landed on the show’s driving premise. The first DayDream book, then, came about as that show’s catalog. Months later, Salomon gave a copy to Carrie Barratt, then-director at East Hampton’s arty LongHouse Reserve gardens. She loved it so much that LongHouse recruited Salomon to create a second edition with entirely new artists, all connected to LongHouse.

Part of Julian Schnabel’s spread, featuring Lily Gavin’s photograph Lolita Chammah at the filming of At Eternity’s Gate (2017). Photo: courtesy of the artist.

Salomon has worked with LongHouse since 2005, serving on its art committee and penning articles about the place. As with last year’s DayDream debut, well over half the artists in this second edition gave Salomon original contributions.

Famed Neo-Expressionist Julian Schnabel, who LongHouse honored alongside Donna Karan at its 2019 gala, hand-wrote quotes by Vincent van Gogh and French writer Jean-Dominique Bauby. Multimedia mastermind Laurie Anderson, who played a concert for dogs at LongHouse in 2016, sent a divine iPhone snap. Artist and author Alastair Gordon wrote an homage to late architect Buckminster Fuller, whose sculpture Fly’s Eye Dome (1997) collapsed under snow at LongHouse in January.

Beyond this common thread, Salomon exerted one other curatorial slant—vulnerability. “I went to lunch with somebody afterwards, and the guy’s like, ‘you had me so nervous doing this thing,’” Salomon said. “I’m like, ‘if you’re nervous about this, that’s good, because I’m taking you out of your comfort zone.’” Salomon himself forewent writing the book’s introduction so he could pen an entry for text-based installation artist Lawrence Weiner. “He fucked up my life,” Salomon’s tribute concludes. “And I love him for that.”

Lawrence Weiner, OUT OF SIGHT (2019) Photo: by James Salomon, courtesy of James Salomon.

Salomon received a vast range of contributions.

Philip Glass’s agent shared an out-a-print composition called “Dreaming Awake” from 2003. “There could be some pianists out there,” Salomon said, “and instead of reading one of these stories, they can play off of this manuscript.” Swiss sculptor Ugo Rondinone made a tongue-in-cheek drawing that simply reads “shut up; I’m dreaming.” His American peer Kiki Smith answered Salomon’s follow up text on her contribution to explain that “I have too many things wanting my attention at the moment and not enough time for myself to daydream.” So, Salomon secured permission to print her message. “I don’t get persnickety,” Salomon said. “I want something different than all the others.”

Philip Glass, Dreaming Awake (2003) Photo: © Dunvagen Music Publishers, Inc.

Of these varied daydreams—which span landback, driving, and death—over a dozen recall youth. Celebrity photographer Michael Halsband recounted manifesting his childhood dream of working with the Rolling Stones. Sculptor Oscar Molina, who is representing El Salvador in its Venice Biennale debut, reflected on how his upbringing shapes his work. Bold painter Joel Mesler shared a story about waking up one night to find his parents “with their noses in funny white powder” during a party in their Beverly Hills home. Maybe the trend relates to the fact that experts have cited the ages seven through 15 as critical in the development of the brain’s Default Mode Network, active mostly in moments of downtime.

DayDream, meanwhile, offers an active means of escapism. Four hundred copies will be sold through LongHouse.