El-Branden Brazil

For as long as I can remember, the universe has intrigued me. When I was a child, I would sit out in the garden and stare endlessly at the night sky, marvelling at the seeming infinity before me. Sometimes, I would feel lonely and insignificant. Whilst at other times, I would feel honoured and integral to the scene above.

I enjoy chasing ideas about perception and mind in relation to space. I believe that the universe, while it may seem expansive beyond imagination, is much closer than our senses dictate to us: That the sense of physical reality is only an illusion, manifested by sensory-selected stimuli required for our survival. Our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and fingers allow us to peer into a universe contrived for our prime needs. However, there is so much more that is out of range of our sense organs.

The dimensions of space, I believe, are deceptive. We can perceive its vastness through our eyes. We can perceive its separateness from ourselves through touch. But, intuitively, I am certain that our place within the universe is far more convoluted and involved. In many ways, the Aborigines may well be correct in their assertion that the universe is being dreamt into existence. As Edgar Allen Poe noted,‘All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.’

Words & Image by El-Branden Brazil