FADING INTO GLORY draws on the Japanese concept of mono no aware, or "the pathos of things. It’s a heightened sensitivity to the transience of one's surroundings where impermanence is met with quiet sorrow yet reverent appreciation. Through intimate photographs of fallen leaves in varying stages of decomposition within the urban landscape, the series is a meditation on appreciating the extraordinary in the overlooked and an invitation to celebrate the final cycle of life.
The project emerged from a singular, unexpected encounter. On an autumn day like any other, the artist noticed a fallen leaf that profoundly altered the way she sees and observes the world. It sparked an enduring commitment to dedicate herself to using art to reveal what goes unseen. It also marked a decisive turning point in her practice. Having previously worked exclusively on abstract painting, she embraced photography as a new visual language to explore and communicate the essence of that first experience. Figuration itself was new territory. Every element of the project, the medium, the subject, the newfound sense of observation, was put in service of capturing something that had moved her too deeply to leave unexamined.
The series began with daily visits to a single tree, where the artist carefully gathered small brittle fallen leaves representing every stage of decay. Their surfaces had withered away to reveal different areas of their intricate, lace-like skeletal structures. Paradoxically, the more weathered the leaf, the more visually complex and exquisite it appeared as if revealing the inner beauty that comes with age. In that, the series challenges narrow, youth-centred notions of beauty and invites a deeper appreciation of old age, vulnerability, and transformation.
FADING INTO GLORY encourages viewers to observe the world more attentively and empathetically, to find wonder in what is easily overlooked, and to seek inner beauty at every stage of life.