Zach Wassef

My project, when i look to the sky, my eyes begin to callus , is an image- and sound-based investigation of human dominance over the natural world. The focus of the project is the separation between humans and nature and how it has become a means for humans to exert control. As I position myself to photograph spaces that the ones above us— the self-appointed gods, who are gluttonous for power— have designated as “nature,” I call into question the suppression and control of The Natural and its lasting effects on our society. I define “The Natural” as non-domesticated nature and humans’ natal ties to the earth. In exploring the way humans interrupt and erase histories and ecologies for personal and capital gain, I am searching for subtleties, weaving details into the composition that shift the basic concept underlying the image. I am using The Natural as an allegorical figure that provides direct evidence that human jurisdiction and dominance cause harm. Wandering the land and listening attentively leads to Tenderness naturally intertwining with my images, as my practice is only possible with the collaboration of the inexplicable. I allow myself to be led by invisible forces and ghostly figures that lead me to the residue that human activity leaves behind. I aim to dissolve myself into the landscape, which will allow me to listen and be led to the fragments I want to archive. I wish to memorialize the marks and wounds left by human authority, bear witness to the trauma of the land, and reinforce the idea that the will of the individual is closely tied to that of the natural world.