Hylonicum

light and its residues

“Being is said in many ways”, Aristotle once observed. Philosophy seeks to grasp the subtleties of existence through reasoning and argument. Photography does so by arresting existence in its flow. I practise philosophy as a profession, yet I came to realise that photography is the necessary continuation of the same inquiry by other means. Words and thought do not reach everything. Arguments may persuade reason, but something deeper can only be touched through the senses.

Hylonicum is my experiment. Its name comes from hyle, the ancient word for matter: not matter as mere stuff, but as substrate, as that which underlies things, receives form, and persists beneath visible change without ever fully coinciding with any single shape. The experiment begins there, with that hidden yet present dimension of things, elusive yet visible, common yet irreducibly singular. It is this that light touches and articulates – light as the first form of bodies.

The work gathered here spans several years and places but is still largely unfolding. Its main structure is given by the sections, each of which addresses a distinct aspect of this elusive presence within cities, landscapes, and ordinary life. Some albums are open-ended projects while others emerge from particular situations, events, or places. Move slowly. This experiment stands against the logic of scrolling. Browse, linger, and lose your footing.