The rocky structures that dot the US Pacific coast, called monoliths, stretch from the US border with Mexico to Canada.
These strange and dramatic formations grow from sandy beaches. or raise like mountains from the ocean. They are the stone pyramids of time, continuously being washed by rain and carved by wind, and waves. Generated by volcanic activity, the monoliths are oftentimes surrounded by fog, in a mysterious, dramatic, and otherworldly atmosphere. This set of images are part of a larger project imagined in white and black, as this was the most expressive way of re-creating these unique landscapes.
About Susanna Patras
After graduating from the university with a degree in English, Susanna Patras decided to follow a different career path and continued her studies in multimedia and photography. While during the first part of her career she focused on journalism and poetry, a few years ago her interest shifted towards visual arts, in particular graphic design and photography. Living on the western coast of the US, she often finds inspiration in scenes from the desert and the Pacific coast. With an eye for minimal compositions, she feels more attracted to shapes, forms and the light that falls upon them. Photography can relate to poetry, in particular, haiku, because it can operate with the same distillation of vocabulary. The transition from poetry to photography was therefore simple.
Aesthetically influenced by both Asian and European minimalism, as well as the dramatic landscapes of Ansel Adams, her photographs seek to express a quiet moment of contemplation in nature, more than a document of the place. The viewer can experience feelings of solitude, harmony, and atmospheric drama. Composition is not only about careful placement of the subject in the frame, but also an experiment with the space between things. This is based on the concept of “Ma”, a Japanese word that means “space” between two parts.
Susanna Patras’ photos have been published in Landscape Photography Magazine, Don’t take Pictures Magazine (online), Dodho Magazine (online), Photographers’ Forum. She is a member of the Houston Center for Photography, UAPR – Visual Artists’ Union of Romania and a contributor to two photo stock agencies: Arcangel and Tandem. She has participated in many international photography exhibitions and festivals and won several awards. [Official Website]
