Eclipse | First Quarter (Limited Edt of 200)

Collective
Eclipse | First Quarter (Limited Edt of 200)

Photographs: Natthaya Thaidecha, Daniel Huete

Publisher: Self-published  by Bad Eyes

56 pages

Year: 2019

Comments: Hard cover swiss brochure binding. 165 x 240 mm. Offset printing, silver ink on black paper 120 gsm. Edition of 200 copies.

Eclipse "First Quarter"

Where does light go to escape? Does it settle itself in between the crests and troughs of shadows? Or fly fluid- light and amorphous. In a quest for answers, we set-out to capture the uncertainty that lingers amidst pain and fear, in one’s own subconscious.

The search culminated in the form of a project titled, Eclipse, that is merely one chapter in an otherwise long journey. The photographs attempt to communicate our collective pursuit for identity and belonging, often shrouded by an intense longing. Eclipse is a mirror, wistfully turning a collective stream of consciousness, into something more tangible. Shedding all forms of inhibition, we made images in Thailand, Vietnam, Bali, and Spain over the span of a year- both individually, and together.

Navigating through Natthaya’s paralysing fear of drowning, and Daniel’s struggle to come to terms with his mother’s passing, we found solace in the art of image-making, devoid of boundaries. Together, we traversed to find the light that exists in the deep dark ocean, despite its bitter cold, and the courage it takes to revisit the land where Daniel’s mother is buried.

Eclipse, is a metaphor, speaking of a darkness that’s temporary. Even as the sun is engulfed by the shadow of the moon, we find solace in the impermanence of that blinding black, which will eventually end. Over the past year, we have drifted through various phases of “being” and fought battles we were otherwise cowering from. Initially, the photographs weren’t a part of a larger plan, but just a means of experiencing who we were at that point of our lives.

As Natthaya’s unstructured style, and Daniel’s experimentative fluidity spills onto the pages of Eclipse, we’ve arrived at a place of acceptance. Closure from the unknown, and seeking whispers from moments yet to come.