Nothing Holding Us
Ben ZamoraMaybe one day, watching fireworks on a New Year's Eve, you wished you could pause the image to watch the sparks explode. Ben Zamora's installation Nothing holding us may come very close to that image. The enormous shock of an explosion, made of dozens of light tubes, hangs still in a black cube. What does this image mean?
"Nothing holding us represents the shock of an event that a moment that jars one out of what is normal. My sculpture captures this moment of impact; simultaneously, the moment right before and the moment right after", tells Zamora.
"The energy of this sculpture stands suspended in a frozen explosive state."
Think of a sad experience like the loss of a loved one, or a happy one; the butterflies racing around when you have a new crush. With his installation, Zamora wants us to reflect on such a life-changing moment, and what drastic consequences it can have for the rest of our lives. In this way, we can celebrate and cherish its results: growth and new insights. Not only in a symbolic way, but also in a literal sense: the installation can be viewed from different angles.
From every perspective, the explosion looks different but remains part of the same whole. Zamora: "Multiple perspectives offer a sculpture that is in constant motion as one moves around the sculpture." The work fits in seamlessly within Zamora's oeuvre, which consists of light installations that create a dialogue between the viewer and his surroundings. As a visitor, you become part of the beautiful patterns that Zamora creates with light.
Photo credits: Janus van den Eijnden
Ben Zamora
Ben Zamora (1977) lives and works in Seattle. Since he completed his master’s degree in Light Design at the University of Washington, Zamora has created large-scale installations and sculptures for museums, festivals and public art projects around the world. Zamora's designs often consist of planes and lines that have no beginning or end, inspired by natural elements of fire, water, earth, and sun.