Given it is their primary source of light, photographers almost always consider the sun. Yet they seldom directly photograph it as a subject. Sun gazing is sometimes enacted as part of spiritual or religious practices, or as an alternative therapy, most often near dawn or dusk. However, it is considered extremely dangerous, and impossible to look at the sun for any length of time without damaging one’s vision or going blind.
A suite of photographic prints from the series are currently exhibited in ‘Staring into the Sun’ at Skar Image Lab in Tāmaki Makaurau as part of the 2023 Auckland Festival of Photography.
‘Radiation’ began as a handmade RA-4 colour print produced using experimental darkroom techniques, and has been recast as a site-specific lightbox installation for the Luma Festival. The glowing orange orb appears to expand beyond the frame and may suggest a celestial body radiating energy and light.
Photo: Katherine Zuo
Photo: Jakub Soltysiak
Photo: Mauricio Andaur