Tribute to Ma

When I was around 14, I had a dream so melancholic I still don’t know whether to categorize it as a dream or a nightmare. It was set in a desert, or what seemed to be a detoxed version of it. Everything was consistently monochromatic, like bleached laundry. I often thought about that dream, and the possibility of it being a vision of a bittersweet future. I began to question why the post-oil period created this insentient need to fabricate vibrant and cultural symbols and structures to overcompensate negative space. This embrace of nothingness holds so much power. A perfect example of this would be the Japanese cultural concept; ‘Ma’. Ma is a celebration of nothing (literally). The more Ma, the more space there is to reflect. I wanted to physically interpret my dream in this shoot the best I could. This shoot is truly a tribute to Ma, and the beauty and gore of it. In the pause between words, in a deep breath, in the potential of nothing, Ma is enabled.

Special thanks to @kadisabincat for modeling. ◆