Darren Almond - Moons of the Lapatus Ocean

My tutor introduced me to Darren Alomnd's work recently, he works in a variety of mediums, including photography and film, using these mediums to "explore the effects of time on the individual."1 The photographs of his which, intrigued me the most are from a series called 'Moons of the Lapatus Ocean'. The series includes two different bodies of work: "Fullmoon photographs that incorporate new images and key earlier images from around the British Isles and new large-scale photographs taken in Tibet."2 His moonlight photographs interest me the most, as I wish to start to photograph using my pinhole cameras at night. My aim is to use the moon as my only light source, for this I will have to use very long exposures, although I am unsure how long. Almond also uses a long exposure however, he uses a digital camera instead of a pinhole camera, therefore his exposures don't need to be as long. Although, the photographs created still hold a ghostly effect like pinhole photographs, due to the hazy moonlight which turns the night into a murky day. I feel Brian Dillon describes Almonds photographs well in his catalogue essay, 'a kind of fog of knowing and unknowing, revealing and concealing.'  The moonlight seems to bring other aspects of the landscape alive compared to what a photograph taken during the day would, you notice different qualities of the landscape. Photographing at night links back to my experience in Finland where I had little sunlight during the first half of my stay. Photographing at night will bring back the circumstances of Finland. It is also a way for me to form an identity with my environment, which at present I feel I have little identity with. These feelings have stemmed from my experience of Finland and the identity the locals have with their harsh environment.


1.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darren_Almond
2.http://www.whitecube.com/exhibitions/da_wc_hs/