16th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Altered Images
The Mysterium IX

The Mysterium is a manifestation of certain fundamental entities upon which – according to my empirical perception - the world is based. I divide the world into elements of nature, civilization and metaphysics. We have contact with civilization on everyday basis. It is the result of an excessive extension of the mechanisms that we - ourselves have created to make our lives a bit more convenient. However, the growth of its structures caused that along the way we have lost the harmonic co-existence with the nature from which we emerged. So, our existence in the urban environment resulted in the perdition, or repression of nature. Metaphysics is something unspeakable. Something that is there, but remains hidden. It complements both worlds without self-identifying with any of them. While the nature and civilization affect the mind and body, metaphysics affects the soul. Undervaluation of any of the world's components contributes to the loss of human’s sense of identity. The protagonist of the presented artwork takes a journey between worlds in search of her own identity.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 10.2017
Date Uploaded: 11.2018
Photo Location: Teplice nad Metui, Czechia
Copyright: © Piotr Dudak