Philosophy via Photography

By: Krishantini Jagadees Malathi

The Japanese Maple

When we think of a Japanese Maple, we merely picture its illustrious, dark purple-red foliage while neglecting the elegance in its converging branches that bear the weight of its leaves. Similarly, in our ever fast-paced lives, we tend to simply perceive the conspicuous and overlook the founding bases that are hidden by the shadows of the bigger picture. Consequently, in this picture, I chose to highlight the beauty in the often forsook branches in hopes of inspiring a change in perspective of what defines beauty and significance. Don't stop at what is first perceived: explore, analyze and look at different perspectives before reaching a conclusion. **

The Piano Kaleidoscope

As the sun rises and sets everyday, I walk by the piano in my dining room more times than I can count with my hands. Yet, each time, my eyes perceive it to be almost non-existential as it transitions from an element of surprise to the mere ordinary. Until, one day - while sitting in the corner - something caught my eye: between the hood and the piano's back, the reflection of light formed a beautiful, stunning pattern! Consequently, it is important to note that the accustomed only becomes ordinary by choice for there is always something to discover as long as curiosity blooms - never underestimate the unfamiliarity in the familiar.

Street Light vs. Clouds

Wrapped by the emotions and colours of the sky, it act as our blanket of joy, sorrow, vigour, motivation and inspiration as the disposition of the sky often dictates our mood without even noticing. Being such a prominent part of our lives, it is impossible for me to neglect it in this compilation. Here, I highlight the towering giants of our streets with the background of our overarching sky in hopes of highlighting the stunning shades of grey and the elegance of contrast. I would also like it to serve as a reminder that what at first might be presumed simple often has the potential to be surprisingly complicated as the intricate is often an interconnected series of the simple. Thus, the first picture imposes simplicity while the second illustrates the complexities involved in emitting light.

Oh Rain! Oh Rain!

Splish Splash! As the rain swiftly falls from the great depths of the sky, collecting all on its way, it evokes feelings of relaxation, fatigue and peace with its distinct earthy smell and therapeutical sound. Thus, when sitting in the car, admiring the beauty of the falling rain, I simply had to capture the dainty raindrops that make the world around - along with its worries - a blur. This image captures a gradient effect of light & concentrated to dark & desolate, representing "the absence of a clear boundary or the continuous spectrum of meaning" as found in life. The gradience acts as a metaphor for the quality of indeterminacy in life which I hope will make people realize that every factor in life is not meant to be regulated and that sometimes, the best way to stay in control is to simply let go and let the flow guide you as does the water guides the river. **

The Light Delight

Light, a blossom from darkness; a hope from despair. On the journey of life, it is the guidance for it is the goal. This series of images that capture the different perspectives of light projections, it aims to foreground the yin and yang of light vs. darkness and how one can't exist without the complementary force of the other. It is important to recognize that for every happiness there is sorrow; for every excitement, there is a disappointment; and for every good there is bad. Don't forget that one can't be acquired without the other as these opposite yet complementary forces interact to form a dynamic system of balance.

Rocks, Stones & Rocks

One of our biggest societal problems stems from the amplification of our difference between race, gender, looks, ethnicity and more. This is due to the fact that many don't realize the common humanity and shared guardianship of this world, simply because it is easier to do so. Consequently, these 2 images of rocks illustrate that though we may have our differences - different sizes, shapes and colours as shown in the stones - at the end of the day, we are all none but overarching rocks (humans). Remember, that we are all on the same plane, facing the same challenges of life; so, why don't we unite with our similarities, embrace our differences and overcome our common hardships with the coalition.

Trickle, Trickle

Succeeding a heavy downpour of rain, lightning and thunder, out comes the glorious rainbow & the landscape engulfed my raindrops and the fresh, 'earthy' smell. As you walk outside and take a deep breath through your nose, doesn't a smile stretch from ear to ear on your face? This is precisely what I felt as I took a stroll in my neighbourhood after heavy rain. Here, the two images capture raindrops on the branches of a tree with grace and tranquillity just as the atmosphere in reality. Consequently, the message these photographs convey is that despite a long, tedious journey of hardship, there will always be a rainbow to enlighten your day, opening the doors to your grace period. Remember, no storm lasts forever; so just hold on, have some faith, and ride through the darkness in reach of light with a smile on your face! :)

Beauty in the Trunk

Here, the two images illustrate a beautiful composition of depth and contrast between black vs. white, dense vs. space, rigid vs. smooth and straight vs. curved. They portray the familiar in an unfamiliar way as insignificant tree trunks suddenly become a site of amazement. Consequently, these pictures aim to evoke speculation and realization that beauty is not rigid but rather versatile as it is subjective, thus, making nothing and everything to be beautiful. Remember, beauty is not to be created but to be nourished from within as it is found in all no matter the form it takes. It simply requires the right perception with the right amount of encouragement.

December Blossom

The December Blossom presents subjects shaped like a flower that is rather, mere nameless extensions of the branch having a unique shape. When we picture a flower, we often tend to imagine one with delicate overlapping petals, a soft-sweet smell and a luminous colour to top it all. However, as demonstrated in this picture, a 'flower' doesn't have to always take the typical shape. In our lives, we often tend to perceive what seems to be, resulting in judgements of a false truth. We tend to limit ourselves with boundaries established with expectations of what should be and what should not. Most of us are so stuck in the stereotypical outlines of objects, environment and life that we forget to draw the connections where none seem to exist and allow free flow. By juxtaposing a flower-shaped object to a real flower, it is to be learnt that things don't always have to be the way that we expect them to be as they often take different forms to create variety. Consequently, don't be limited with your expectations of what you believe something should be; rather, open yourself to the vast possibilities that we call life.

Crystal Splice

Ice; often representative of rigidity and frigidity, it glitters under the moonlight yet evokes fear with its slippery rigour. Though as rigid as it seems, its crystals entwine to form a beautiful pattern as presented in the photographs. Consequently, they are representative of individuality vs. collectivism. Although each 'crystal' (symbolizing an individual) emits its own prepossessing presence, together they increase their beauty as they interconnect to form intricate patterns. Although there is power within individuality, our collective differences adjoined with our similarities have the potential to form a yet more powerful whole.

Dance of the Fairy Light & the Brick

Often symbolizing the celebration of a festive, the decoration of lights tends to evoke feelings of joy, hope and wonder within ourselves. As little as they seem, they miraculously work their magic to invoke great feelings of warmth as they trigger dopamine, the 'feel-good' chemical in our brain. Consequently, I present to you the 'Dance of the Fairy Light & the Brick' in which lights are juxtaposed to the brick to play with gradience, shadow and light. I hope these images serve as a reminder for you that to cherish the little moments of joy and the little things that give rise to your smile for it is the sum of invisible small that makes the visible big.

"Let the Child within You Play"

Creativity is something we all wish to acquire yet it is a phenomenon that only some successfully achieve. This is because most tend to forget that creativity is a great power within all of us, waiting to be nurtured. Often, we see creativity as something to be obtained, making us oblivious to the fact that it is a concept that can be taught and learnt. Thus, we fail to take a step back, to tie the loose ends and to perceive the world from a different perspective. As we grow up, we unknowingly tend to imprison this creativity through self-doubt and placing boundaries on our imagination. Consequently, by presenting this playful photograph, I hope it encourages you to take the risk to let your minds wander, and let the child within you play...

Frozen in Time

In the journey of life, time is often one's greatest enemy as it is ever so cunning, waiting for nothing and no one in its path. With each second that ticks, we ever so slowly move forward until seconds become minutes, minutes become hours, hours become days and days become years... Thus, we find ourselves in a loop of struggling to fit into the timeline of life and understand our existence within it. In an attempt to do so, the majority are often stuck either in the past or future; hence, living the present as a robot dutiful to follow a monotonous routine. Hence, as adulthood engulfs us, most neglect to be mindful and live in the present. Consequently, it is important to remember that although understanding the past and future is crucial, living in the present is the priority as it connects the past and future as it is destined to become the past and to be the future. After all, the past, present and future are intricately intertwined, making one's existence impossible without the other. Thus, this picture of 'Frozen in Time' depicts this ideology as the snow represents the endless waves of time in space and the clock represents the intricate connection of the past, present and future.

Fading Away

In our day-to-day lives, we often tend to follow a series of scheduled routines that happen to follow an endless cycle with the same set of circumstances to uncover a new day of the calendar. In doing so, we let our life into an 'auto-mode' in which we lose our sense of the present. For instance, have you ever been amazed by how quickly your day flashes by? Consequently, in contemporary society, many experience feelings of emptiness, hopelessness, mystery and more. Depicting these emotions, this image illustrates the concept of 'fade' to symbolize our ever automated lives. As more continue to feel empty within, it is important to remember that emptiness is not the result of the absence of joy but rather the absence of fulfilment. So, when faced with emptiness, we don't necessarily have to accept that suffering is inevitable but instead, we can place ourselves at the centre of meaning, finding fulfillment and betterment -- remember, this takes time.

Blossom in the Darkness

Candles; used for a range of celebrations, symbolize hope, unity, light and warmth. They illustrate a light in the darkness as a single candle can both defy and define it as shared by Anne Frank. In fact, a person, in a lot of ways, is like a candle. Similar to us, it battles between light and darkness, it burns to survive (we burn food), it reflects its surroundings (our thoughts are reflected by our environment) and reacts to produce a product (we are fundamentally chemical beings of reaction). Thus, it is helpful for us to imagine a candle within us and our mind for "if there is a candle in your mind, your life will not know what utter darkness is." Like the candle, we must also merge with the surroundings that are in and of us. Sometimes, we need to take the leap to leave our multitude of thoughts behind: leave analysis, leave that voice in our head, and simply be. Be in the moment. Let the scene move along the periphery, observing every detail along the way. In such wise, we can be mindful of our surroundings and have a new sense of life - a more profound, hopeful and peaceful one.

Luck: everything or nothing?

How often have you undermined luck to simply be a small factor of chance? Just another gear in the system of life? However, the reality is that much of life is ruled by these very 2 factors: luck and timing, for there exists a set of intangible circumstances that dictate the 'success' of a person. The matter of luck justifies key concepts such as the fact that you can be your best and still fail. Thus, by sharing this picture of cards symbolizing luck, I hope you realize that much of life is out of control and that anything can happen to anyone. So, why don't we free ourselves from comparison, arrogance from success and self-blame for failures? After all, the fact of life is that our positions within it are assigned at random for malice and misfortune to choose their victims blindly - just a little luck and alternate timing makes all the difference.

A Lil' Splash of Colour

We, as humans, often have the urge to categorize everything as we try to place them into one or two undifferentiated categories. We tend to narrow a whole spectrum of possibilities to the two most extreme options - the black and the white. However, we forget the existence of infinite shades of grey in between which open the door to vast possibilities. By juxtaposing black & white with colour, these photographs encourage one to exit the "black & white thinking" and to realize that not everything is distinct and straightforward. So, why waste our energy and sacrifice our sanity for a perfect, categorized world when the reality is shaped by the abstract? Don't insist to conform your preconceptions onto the world; rather, let the flow be organic while you adjust your thinking to accept the world for simply what it is. There is no need to complicate the simple.
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Perception: this or that?

Have you ever realized that behind every pair of eyes, there exists a world unique to its own? Different from all the others? This is what we call, 'Perception'. Vital in our world, it is the very thing that defines a person and the kind of experiences they are going to have. It can make the very difference between success & failure, happiness & sorrow and curiosity & apathy. Thus, remember: perception is everything because the way one views something can make all the difference. So, the next time you're faced with an obstacle in life, try changing your perception of it to rather be an opportunity for growth. By doing so, you're sure to witness the epitome of meaning for the bad is only 'bad' if you choose to give credence to it.

A Leap of Faith

Image yourselves swinging on a swing and in the distance, you another swing coming towards your way. This one is empty, full of potential; however, you realize that in order to reach this swing, you are faced with the often terrifying realization that you must get off your own swing and travel through the unknown. As this idea was presented by Meghan Musnicki in 2015, she shares how this journey can often be terrifying as we are at the risk of losing control. This jump between bars can either lead to success or failure. However, I would like to take this opportunity to remind you that these failures are not just failures but rather valuable lessons that nurture us forward. Sometimes, in order to reach our full potential, we must be willing to dive heard forward into the recklessness of faith and damn the consequences; because regardless of the outcome, you'll have moved one step forward. Thus, try not to overthink it for sometimes all it takes is a simple leap of faith. We are all born into this world with a blank canvas, an empty brush and the freedom to paint....so paint! Don't overthink about the consequences or the perfection of outcome....just paint! Take those risks and take that leap of faith. You never know the surprises waiting for you on the other side.

Flow of Curiosity

As humans, we can't help but be naturally curious. We tend to often question the world around us whether it is for learning a new concept, advocating for injustice or simply finding ways to avoid our dislikes. Although curiosity is a natural phenomenon, the extent to which it's nurtured and the direction in which it's employed, greatly varies. Consequently, this photograph symbolizes curiosity as "free-flowing water" which, ever so often, gets interrupted by the welcomed disruptions of life - symbolized by the strawberry - to which the water (curiosity) envelops around. Consequently, this photograph encourages one to go with the natural flow of curiosity and embrace the disruptions which trigger it. Ask questions, be curious and never let that fire within you extinguish, for curiosity is the very thing that gives fulfillment to life.

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