Ode to Silence
With my graphic designer background, my eye has been trained to see, observe, seek information, and draw inspiration from art, everyday life and popular culture for almost 25 years, and it has become part of my DNA. My first camera was an old analogue Nikon with different lenses and colour filters.
Through years of working in a design agency, composition and layout are innate skills that also transfer to my photography. Space between objects, and creating tension and balance comes naturally and is a common denominator in my creative process. I am drawn to the built environment, nature, and natural light. I am fascinated by how light can change the landscape entirely and highlight a structure's appearance.
"The sun never knew how great it was until it hit the side of a building."
Louis Kahn.
In my latest project, "Ode to Silence", I am exploring landscapes that can evoke a meditative experience where time seems to stop, and the chatter in my mind becomes silent, and I feel a deeper connection to myself.
For as long as I can remember, I have been drawn to open spaces, built structures, landscapes and horizons, which convey a particular emotion in me. Not conscious of the common denominator in all these different spatial locations, I kept seeking it as it always provided me with stillness and pause, which I enjoyed.
As an architectural photographer documenting space, I have been dwelling on this topic for the past few years. I have a strong connection and fascination for Japanese aesthetics and philosophy. Through the book "100 WHITES" by Japanese designer Kenya Hara, I learned that the Japanese have a word for the stillness that can be felt, especially in spatial locations, "MA", or 'space in-between'.
The word itself, "MA", roughly translates to "negative space" but evokes a more profound sense of a "gap" or "pause" that gives new shape and meaning to the whole. But the concept relates to all aspects of life. It has been described as a pause in time, an interval or emptiness in space. "MA" is the fundamental time and space life needs to grow—a space where absence can be as important as presence.
"Form is emptiness; emptiness is form."
From the famous text Heart Sutra in Buddhism.
This project results from pockets of time created in the last year where I have relocated from everyday life, seeking solitude and exciting places that visually intrigue me. With one mission in mind: to observe and to see. And what I see is places that hold space, that hold everything and nothing, "MA", is emptiness full of possibilities, like a promise yet to be fulfilled.
This is an ongoing project that will be continuing to develop. The first exhibition of this project takes place at CYAN Studio, Oslo 9th - 11th of February 2024 as part of Nord Photography's "The Mentor Exhibit - class of 2023" .