Himmel (Heaven) — The Great Noon
Berlin, Germany, 2019
Berlin, Germany, 2019
Erde (Earth)
Brandenburg, Germany, 2019
Brandenburg, Germany, 2019
Mensch (Human)
Potsdam, Germany, 2019
Heaven, Earth, and Human
According to the principles behind the creation of Korean vowels in Hunminjeongeum (the 15th-century system that introduced the Korean alphabet, now known as Hangul), each letter is based on three fundamental elements: a dot (∙) representing the Sun in the Heavens, a horizontal line (ㅡ) symbolising the flat Earth, and a vertical line (ㅣ) standing for the upright Human. Among them, the Human serves as the mediator and the central figure, balancing Heaven and Earth.
Presence as Perspective in the Absence of Depth
Drawing inspiration from this structural worldview, I capture everyday scenes within the camera frame. By precisely framing the world as it is—without manipulation—I explore how three-dimensional reality is compressed into a two-dimensional image.
Photography allows me to observe and interpret the world’s form—standing between sky and earth, between abstraction and material. Framing is an act of positioning myself within space and mediating my relationship with the subject, distilling reality through perspective. In this way, I seek to uncover a subjective sense of form, embedding my thoughts on presence and relationship into the simplest lines and planes.
This conceptual foundation led to the visual experiment that became the photo series Beyond Perspective, which was first presented in my 2021 solo exhibition under the title 50BELL’s Guide: Beyond Perspective. Since then, this concept has continued to inform the development of all subsequent series.