I’m Simon McCheung, a user interface designer for Rocksteady. I’m also a self taught photographer. I’ve been taking spontaneous, fine art images for a few years, and I thought I’d try my hand at creating a series of images while away from home in London. When I decided to go to Iceland, I knew it was a country filled with unfamiliar, alien-like landscapes. This prompted the Interstellar series. In which, a character explores a strange new world.
I purchased a glass fish bowl to represent my character as an aspiring astronaut. The plain undergarments aim to give the sense that the character might be seen within a dream.
I had the character all set, but felt I was missing something solid to turn the narrative into a series. After having conversations with the locals of Iceland, I discovered how climate change has affected their land.
They explained that the ice and glaciers were receding at an alarming rate. This has caused uncertainty in the eco-system and affected the livelihoods of those who depend on the land.
I began thinking about the effects of climate change on every location I visited thereafter. It was enveloping my Interstellar theme. My glass fish bowl developed from my original intentions, into a metaphor; A society living in a bubble. Eventually the bubble pops, or in this case, cracks to reveal the truth.
I wanted the viewers to discover this deeper meaning as they look through the series. Just as I had on my journey.
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Interstellar / Crash
Are we the aliens on an alien planet?
Interstellar / Discover
We feel our surroundings for something familiar to relate to, but what if there’s nothing familiar at all?
Do we then make the surroundings familiar to us?
I see a dog in the distance.
Interstellar / Spectator
She came and presented herself to us.
She’s beautiful but moving away from us.
The under currents are changing but I’m too distracted by her beauty to notice.
Interstellar / Shattered Memoirs
My neglect of the under currents have burst my bubble.
I don’t understand and I’m unfamiliar.
I’m back to the same place where I first crashed.
Interstellar / Intimate
Am I dreaming?
She’s taken me in her arms.
I begin to understand what’s causing the pain.
Interstellar / The Other Side
By her side.
I see things beyond the spectator.
Interstellar / Awaken
She let me go.
I’m left alone to with a burst bubble.
Interstellar / Contemplation
All I can think about was her.
I realize the bubble was holding me back.
Interstellar / Promise
I want to make a promise with her.
By living my life outside the bubble.
Interstellar / This is Home
I realized that she had always been close and familiar.
The land wasn’t alien, but we created a bubble to see things alien.
This was our home after all.
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