Description
In the beginning was thought.
I AM is the moment when the first thought or state of consciousness arises. A vortex-like existence where the maelstrom of thoughts slowly gives birth to a new world. I AM can be triggered by a life crisis, an experience, or a vision, yet it undoubtedly broadens our understanding of the multiple dimensions of our existence.
I AM is an artistic photo essay that tells my own story. In my world, we inhabit a nondual existence where traditional binaries such as good and evil, dark and light, masculine and feminine do not stand in opposition to each other, but constitute natural and complementary parts of us all. We harbour respect for every living being and understand our task in the eternal cycle of life.
I have been inspired by the Neolithic cultures of south-eastern Europe, where a genuine and direct relationship with nature permeated everyday life. The holy cycle of life – birth, death and resurrection – were metaphysical experiences that were rendered intelligible in the shape of Mother Earth, the origin and goal of everything. It was a time when equality existed, before humans began to create gods in accordance with their own interests and to their own advantage. Whether it is merely a myth is less important. This depiction of primeval society has not only served as an inspiration, but it increasingly appears will determine the conditions for our future. As evidence for this society’s existence take, for example, the words mother and sea, which are more or less interchangeable in most primeval cultures. Mara – Mare, the origin of everything – the goal of everything. The water of life – the water of the womb. The sea of infinity.
The dramaturgy of this wordless narrative originates from the story of creation. A story which in its basic elements almost without exception is depicted in similar ways in cultures across the world: the origin of the world, the birth of humankind, the fall and rebirth. I have chosen to let the various sources blend to form a unitary experience centred on nature and Mother Earth, rather than depicting literal scenes. With these images, I have aimed to convey a sacred mood letting awe, mystery and various levels of consciousness guide how they’ve come into existence. The images are not a depiction of an external reality, but serve as a medium to convey an inner experience, a way to our collective human subconscious gathered piece by piece over millions of years.
I have searched for the likeness of the human figure and symbols in nature, and vice versa. I’ve sought for nature’s shapes inscribed in the human body in order to clarify and emphasise the unity and interdependence of everything. Hence nature becomes an internal experience instead of an external phenomenon. Here we will likewise find the ruthless rampage of evil forces, with Mother Earth biding her time, shackled but indestructible. For the resurrection of Mother Earth and life alike, death and destruction of the past is inevitable.
