Towards nothing: photographing through the lens of Zen intuition

<p>My project investigates the ways that practices of photography and Zen can fold into a singular practice. The practice of photography in this project centres on the act of photographing while walking, which moves the focus of photographic practice from image-making to the processes involved in taking a photograph. This method is developed alongside an investigation of Zen Intuition, which is a term that amalgamates the intuitive practices that occur within Zen, one of which is Zen-seeing. Zen-seeing is described as a phenomenon in which seeing turns into one's nature and is an immersion-first, non-dualistic understanding of the world in the here and now.</p> <p>By investigating the links between Zen Intuition and photographing, my project resulted in two major outcomes. One is Active Capture which refers to an apparatus-less photographing method in which the process of photographing becomes the only outcome of photography. The second is Chronolocation which is a way of understanding photographic practice and the resulting photographs through Zen philosophy and Active Capture. This project develops photography as a way of locating a very specific version of Zen-based intuition in the world, while also allowing the practitioner to co-arise with it, with the photograph acting as the residue of this action.</p>