“I’ve always felt a significant fascination towards loneliness,” says Vietnam-based photographer and visual creator Trung Bao. “But the kind of loneliness that makes you feel somewhat at peace.” In the featured images, solitary figures stand on balconies at dusk, or on street corners under lamplight. Elsewhere, grids of tower block windows glow yellow in the gloom, giving a sense of what it means to be alone, together.
Beyond the city, Trung Bao captures calming natural vistas, where pale blue skies are mirrored in glassy lakes. “Although cold and vast, there is a sense of serenity,” the artist reflects. In one shot, viewers are encouraged to look down upon a valley, where sunlight glows from the edges of billowing clouds and the water is still. In another, a subject stares outwards towards a mysterious pillar of smoke in the distance.
Trung Bao compares the image-making process to that of music, with the goal of evoking feelings that are often hard to put into words. “I like to think of myself as a composer,” the photographer continues. “I hope to convey emotions, thoughts and stories that can only be felt, never described.” The results are deeply contemplative, blending Hopper-esque Victorian architecture with contemporary mises-en-scène.
All images courtesy Trung Bao
1. Lonely Tranquility
2. Incognito
3. Inner Apocalypse
4. Sonder II
5. Nightfall
6. Incognito II
7. Lonely Tranquility
