Stark geometry
Vibrant contrasts
Tangible presences
Shadows are absences that are intensely present, carving out negative spaces that define the positive forms.
“Visibility is not the original mode of manifestation.” – Michel Henry
Aesthetic provocation
Serves as a
Metaphysical prompt
This duality, this simultaneous presence of the tangible object and its fleeting, shadow-form, is where the a locus of metaphysical resonance.
“The sensible is not merely felt; it is understood, it is taken up into a structure of meaning.” – Mikel Dufrenne
Dependent entity
Temporal materialization
Spatial variation
Is the shadow merely the contingent outcome of specific physical conditions, or does it possess a kind of ephemeral essence?
“The photographic sign is pure contingency.” – Rosalind E. Krauss
Relentless sun
Ephemeral forms
Fleeting instant
A tapestry woven by the threads of time, each moment is a stitch in the grand design.
“The eternal recurrence is the heaviest burden to bear. But it is also the greatest gift. It makes everything light, everything beautiful, everything sacred.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
Yellow pipe
Chain-link fence
Seemingly unremarkable
It is a testament to the power of the aesthetic to transform our perception of the world and to invite us to see the world anew.
“Photography is about finding the poetry in the ordinary.” – Nicco Valenzuela
Positive forms
Negative spaces
Independent entities
When presences in the world are only hinted at we are left with absences.
“The shadow is not the object, but its double, its other. It is what the object is not, but what it might be.” – Alphonso Lingis
Supposed audience
Heavily influenced
Individual preference
Operative light and shadow play high above the lobby floor.
“The real problem at the base of all philosophy is the problem of how the actual world discloses itself to us.” – Alfred North Whitehead
Experience action
Physical property
Objects depicted
In the courtyard, I appreciate skylight window shadows overlapping an interior wall.
“When I’m working on a problem, I never think about its beauty, I just think about how to solve the problem, but when I finish it, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it’s wrong.” – Richard Buckminster Fuller
Something lurking
Sense of tension
Disrupts the order
Life is unpredictable and there are always things that are beyond control.
“Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.” – Søren Kierkegaard
Bright yellow color
Pierces through
Shadow mesh
Structures and institutions are created to control and order our lives.
“It is not enough to be industrious; one should also be something.” – Henry David Thoreau