When I went to Iceland in 2021, I was most surprised at the sheer expanse of uninhabited area on the island. There were entire swaths of land where absolutely no one would or could get to. I wanted to create something to simulate what the last sliver of civilization before an endless world of unexplored wilderness felt like.
The phrase “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” can be interpreted as setting out into the unknown but longing for the past familiarity you leave behind. Or perhaps it is about being stuck in a restricting loop of doing what is expected of you but looking out into the unknown with a desire to go off the worn trail. Either way, it conveys a sense of loneliness.
This piece was a composite of four different images, created using Photoshop. The text was added with Indesign.