Blind Spot: An Exploration of Time Through Experimental Photography
Written by Oman Morí
Copy edited by Melis Ozdemir
Julie Van der Vaart’s latest photo book, Blind Spot (Void, 2022), pulls the limits of photography by using the human body and ancient natural landscapes as her canvas. Her experimentations in the darkroom are turned into paint strokes to craft a disorienting yet captivating choreography between humanity and the natural world, time and space, and soft and harsh textures.
Over six years, Van der Vaart has focused her art practice on the relativity of time perception. She challenges the linear concept of time, engaging in a conversation over the realm of imaginary time—an abstract concept that varies from person to person. Her fascination with space and time since childhood is palpable in her work. “I tried to imagine the size of the universe,” she recalls. “I imagined space in front of me, but I also felt myself as a physical presence in that space: it stretched out in my head, and I lost myself in the infinite depth. I also had similar experiences with time, that it was stretchable, movable, and not fixed at all,” she reflects.
The title of her book, Blind Spot, highlights the connection between the optic nerve and the retina and how our brains complete information from outside our field of vision. This metaphor resonates with her exploration of reality and our perception of it, echoing the principles of Gestalt psychology—seeing reality as a whole rather than mere parts. To achieve this, Van der Vaart ingeniously blends her previous works, distorting her images to extend their meanings or craft entirely new narratives—a dialogue with her past self.
In the series “Beyond Time,” she transforms the human body into a confusing tapestry of lines and textures. Darkroom chemicals bring life to characters that blend into space. In “Deep Time,” she employs photopolymer etching—an alternative printing process—to manipulate the shapes of mineral deposits found in caves. These enigmatic images conjure spectral human forms, blurring the lines between reality and the ethereal.
“Waterfall,” the last series, offers a Buddhist perspective on water as a vessel for energy that dissolves and reunites with the whole—an exploration of the fluidity of existence.
Blind Spot is the culmination of Van der Vaart’s meticulous experimentation within the darkroom and in the printing process. The matte finish occasionally shimmers with a metallic brightness, adding a layer of complexity to the visuals. The deliberate repetition in sequencing creates a rhythmic pattern similar to music, which reflects the author’s fascination with the endless repetitions of time.
To learn more about her work, you can visit her website or Instagram profile.
