Beneath showcases Ceitas Atelier’s Prologue, research into Australian artists, and an index of stimuli to effectively curate it’s desired presence.
Prologue
Design - Christian Duyckers
Investigative Research, Conversations
Maps That Melt The Memory of Ice
Visual Compendium - Ceitas Atelier
Shells, 2024.
Photographing seashells is more than a way of admiring their beauty; it is a means of engaging closely with the details of the natural world. The camera forces attention to aspects often overlooked: the intricate spirals, the subtle ridges, and the way light plays across the surface.
A shell, so small and seemingly simple, becomes a study in texture, form, and pattern, revealing both complexity and order. Through photography, it is possible to explore the tension between fragility and resilience, impermanence and permanence, surface and structure. Seashells carry histories that are rarely obvious at first glance. Each one is the remnant of an organism’s life, shaped by currents, tides, and time.
Photographing them invites reflection on these processes, as well as on human interaction with nature.
Collecting shells or arranging them for photographs raises questions about our desire to possess and categorise the natural world. Photography mediates this interaction, allowing us to examine these objects while preserving the context of their origin—or, in some cases, transforming it entirely.
Creative experimentation further expands what seashell photography can accomplish. Extreme close-ups can render a familiar object almost unrecognisable, turning ridges into landscapes and spirals
into endless pathways. Water, dew, and reflective surfaces introduce movement and light that challenge the notion of a shell as a static object. These choices illustrate how photography mediates experience: it allows us to explore the ordinary in extraordinary ways, questioning assumptions about scale, beauty, and significance.
Ultimately, photographing seashells is a negotiation between observation and interpretation. It highlights the tension between what is given and what is perceived, between the material reality of the shell and the narrative created through the lens.
Each image becomes a site of enquiry, prompting reflection on form, meaning, and human perception. The act of photographing transforms these small, often overlooked objects into subjects of artistic exploration and philosophical contemplation of time. These photographs, like the illustrations, engage with this enquiry of time and, more specifically, demonstrate how this exploration has shaped the project.
A shell, so small and seemingly simple, becomes a study in texture, form, and pattern, revealing both complexity and order. Through photography, it is possible to explore the tension between fragility and resilience, impermanence and permanence, surface and structure. Seashells carry histories that are rarely obvious at first glance. Each one is the remnant of an organism’s life, shaped by currents, tides, and time.
Photographing them invites reflection on these processes, as well as on human interaction with nature.
Collecting shells or arranging them for photographs raises questions about our desire to possess and categorise the natural world. Photography mediates this interaction, allowing us to examine these objects while preserving the context of their origin—or, in some cases, transforming it entirely.
Creative experimentation further expands what seashell photography can accomplish. Extreme close-ups can render a familiar object almost unrecognisable, turning ridges into landscapes and spirals
into endless pathways. Water, dew, and reflective surfaces introduce movement and light that challenge the notion of a shell as a static object. These choices illustrate how photography mediates experience: it allows us to explore the ordinary in extraordinary ways, questioning assumptions about scale, beauty, and significance.
Ultimately, photographing seashells is a negotiation between observation and interpretation. It highlights the tension between what is given and what is perceived, between the material reality of the shell and the narrative created through the lens.
Each image becomes a site of enquiry, prompting reflection on form, meaning, and human perception. The act of photographing transforms these small, often overlooked objects into subjects of artistic exploration and philosophical contemplation of time. These photographs, like the illustrations, engage with this enquiry of time and, more specifically, demonstrate how this exploration has shaped the project.
Photography - Christian Duyckers
Stimuli Index
Ceitas reliably credits these artists where due. The use of these images is purely for innovative purposes, cultivating as an index of stimuli.
Published on the occasion of the exhibition: "New Itineraries", Musée de'Elysée,
Lausanne, June 13 - September 8, 1991
Measurements: 58.6 × 92.7 × 36.7 cm
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. Purchased, 1985.
©The estate of Inge King
David Noonan, 2017, Common Editions.
Jungjin Lee, 2025
Sidney Nolan, 1940.
Oil on canvas, mounted on composition board, 73.3 x 88.2 cm
Barbara Hepworth, London, 1943-1958.
Plaster on wood base.
12 ⅞ x 15¾ x 11⅞ in
Hashimoto Naotsugu, 2003. 11.2 × 6.2 cm
Alexander Calder, 1936.
Lignum vitae, walnut wood, paint and steel rods.
51⅞ x 24¼ x 11⅜ in
Deborah Turbeville, 1976.
High Diver I
Gerhard Richter, 1965. Oil On Canvas 190 x 110cm
Provoke Group, Tokyo, Nitesha, 2023
The darkroom for me was a place where I learnt my craft , when photography was a craft. the chemical processes , the mixing of chemicals , pushing films from 800iso to 1600 iso , watching the print appear from the tray after fine tuning the printing process after many mistakes both shooting and processing. Photography was something I fell into with open arms. The equipment was basic , all manual cameras and focusing , 36 maybe 37 frames if you were lucky on the roll and discovering what you had only after you processed it. The pathway I went down was newspapers and press photography , after leaving school I began as a copy boy , which would go and grab the lunches and pick up envelopes full of undeveloped film from photographers out on assignment. Photographers were out shooting sport, politics , breaking news events , the days were full and exciting , I had become hooked on the buzz of the culture. Everyday was different from the last.
I eventually got a cadetship and began processing the film and printing the negatives and shooting . The darkroom in its day was massive , it was the hub of everything. 28 enlargers all in one dark room, all full constantly with photographers printing for the next edition. It was fun, there were plenty of great characters with so much experience to learn off , that was the best part and one that I am most grateful for, learning off those that came before us, incredible photographers. I dabbled in it and could have gone the fashion photographer way or even made heaps of money doing advertising but I chose to stay with the side of the industry that told history , I saw it as that. News-makers that were able to see the best and worst of life everyday. Fashion bored me but was inspired a lot by the magazines and the Helmut Newtons of the fashion world.
I wanted to ask about your idea of “photography”. It is quite evident that your photographs address political and social problems that are constantly circulated throughout news outlets globally. I wanted to ask, what is your reason for photographing, and specifically, the subjects you photograph?
I dabbled in it and could have gone the fashion photographer way or even made heaps of money doing advertising but I chose to stay with the side of the industry that told history , I saw it as that. News-makers that were able to see the best and worst of life everyday. Fashion bored me but was inspired a lot by the magazines and the Helmut Newtons of the fashion world. Shooting news takes its toll on you eventually emotionally , the physical act and the emotional scenes eventually wear you down. I am fortunate to be able to experience these scenes and have for many decades , but at a cost.
Following on from my previous question, I wanted to ask, what sort of emotions are you feeling when photographing such events? For example, the Black Summer Photographs document such an intense catastrophe (that Australia unfortunately suffers from continuously). From grabbing your camera and going to these places and photographing, what are you feeling?
The blacksummer fires were a lot of work. I have been shooting fires since the early 90's but normally they flare up here and there over a couple of days or weeks,but I chased that summer for over 6 months . You become ultra aware of the weather and the surroundings, how to get into the fire ground but most importantly how you can get out safely, having others , like my oculi colleagues chasing and reporting as well , I felt safe as we would discuss location and scenarios everyday . The death of the animals and people's lifelong possessions is heartbreaking to watch unfold, but that is our role , to bring awareness of these situations and many others to the attention of the public. Politics can be mundane but I enjoy the power switch that you have over decision makers . Photography is a way of keeping the power of ego balanced.
Going back to my question regarding your photographic inception, have you always been interested in documenting political and social issues?
Politics can be mundane but I enjoy the power switch that you have over decision makers . Photography is a way of keeping the power of ego balanced . Political photography and social issues are connected . They work together in parts. Issues that arise from new laws like cutting down old growth forest, weapon manufacturing , pill-testing, housing developments , all these stories and much more come down to policies made by the government and keeping pressure on the political elite is an important part of democracy.
I am greatly motivated by your series “Tropical Cyclone Pam, Vanuatu”. What can you tell me about your impressions of Vanuatu after seeing the destruction caused by the cyclone?
Tropical cyclone Pam was a category 5 cyclone that demolished Vanuatu , it was raised by the ferociousness of it when it crossed land. I was sent over to cover it by AFP, Agence France Presse . I was able to get there a day after it happened. First impressions of the island and people was how resisient they were . Instead of waiting for emergency services that really don't exist like we have here in Australia , the locals would do their best to remove trees from houses and clean streets of debris.We had no electricity and were bunkered down with other news agencies and NGOs with whom we shared power and satellite connections. It wasn't a dangerous assignment , but it was tough to get images out and get around the island. The locals were very kind and friendly , so taking photographs was easy.
I have noticed that certain series of yours are documented in black and white whilst others are quite bold with colours, what is your process for deciding whether your photographs should be black and white or in colour, what establishes your decision?
Black and White to me is the way to see most things . If I could, the world of photography would have stayed black and white. I sometimes convert a colour digital file to black and white, in most parts because the lighting was ordinary to start with and the scene itself looked like it should be. In Australia the Hi-visibility safety wear does my head in, and at times if in the background a stray worker with his hivis just destroyed the scene then I convert it to black and white, for an example. The composition is always there and the perspective of my way of shooting remains the same. But that only caters for my own personal work, not many people run images in black and white these days, so most things are in colour and that's what I offer them.
Lastly, I wanted to ask about Oculi Creative, what can you say about Oculi’s impact on Australian documentary photography?
Ah Oculi! Well, 25 years next year and somehow we are still there and stronger for it every year. It survives because it's not about money, it survives because of an underlying belief in photography, camaraderie and storytelling. It has come a long way and morphed into many shapes over the years but what it does is, it stays the course. We have stamina. For what it has done for documentary photography in Australia, others will be able to answer that better than me, everyone has their opinion of Oculi. You need to remember oculi was born in the golden age of photography, there was print and magazines, before the birth of instagram and before digital. As the photo practice now becomes a mundane, self indulgent look inside itself, imagery that relates to artist statements about the photographer more than it does the subject .
We stay the course of ethical, best practice. We nurture the emerging practitioners and open doors to places that otherwise would not be possible to some photographers. Oculi does not bow to the ideals of the so-called industry elite that others aspire to. It’s impact is a visual record of Australia and its pacific neighbours, a historic documentation of our time.
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