The concept of metamorphosis affects every aspect of what a body is made of—even its interior.
Internal metamorphosis is grounded in movement and visual depth; the inside of the human body unfolds in layers, extending through long "tunnels and passageways". It is a space that resists immediate understanding, demanding a different kind of gaze—one that penetrates rather than observes, that follows the organic flow rather than isolates forms.
As with every work and project, the idea must originate from a visual foundation, as seen in “BODY-SHADOWS-WORKS”.
The_inside_metamorphosis arises from the need to represent the body’s ability to expand in both height and width beneath the skin, through organs and veins.
The photographic research began with a collection of cave representations, created through techniques such as painting, engraving, and even real physical exploration.
These varied depictions of caves serve to develop and train the eye, helping to capture shifts in surface and spatial depth.
The visual training derived from studying these images has been crucial in learning how to represent surfaces in flux, transitions between textures, and shifts in spatial depth. Their spatial logic echoes the internal structure of the body—dynamic, porous, and constantly in motion.
This approach was deeply influenced by the atmospheric ink landscapes of Alexander Cozens, whose abstracted blots and washes evoke interior states and undefined spaces, suggesting rather than illustrating. Similarly, Gustave Doré's dramatic chiaroscuro engravings—particularly those illustrating Dante’s Inferno—provided an emotional and spatial intensity that informed my exploration of interiority as a space of transformation.
In this sense, The_inside_Metamorphosis becomes a study not only of what lies beneath the skin but of how we see and construct the invisible. It is an attempt to reconcile inner space with outer form, using photography, abstraction, and reference as tools to reimagine the body not as a fixed entity, but as a mutable environment—expanding, collapsing, and transforming in ways that defy traditional representation.
Their multi-directional structures create visually rich environments—ideal for exploring transformation and the layered perception of depth.
During the course of my research, I came across a series of medical examinations—gastroscopies and colonoscopies—performed on my mother. What struck me was the extraordinary visual resemblance between these internal medical images and the cave studies I had been conducting. The textures, the irregularities, the moist, fleshy surfaces, and the way light behaved in those confined spaces echoed the same qualities I had been exploring in representations of underground environments.
This unexpected connection led me to begin incorporating actual internal images of the human body into my study of depth. Rather than relying solely on metaphor or analogy, I started to work with real anatomical data—fragments of the body seen from the inside—as a way of grounding the visual research in tangible, lived material.
The overlap between these clinical images and natural cave formations revealed a compelling continuity: both spaces are hidden, rarely seen directly, and require mediation through technology in order to be visualized. Both also suggest a kind of descent—into the earth or into the self—and invite a reconsideration of what it means to explore interiority, whether physical or psychological.
The body was no longer just a symbolic structure, but a literal, vulnerable terrain—its hollows and passageways rendered visible through the lens of both science and art.
The notions of entry and exit within my visual research are articulated through a carefully constructed stratification of dark tonalities, which function as progressive indicators of spatial depth. This spatial articulation begins with the application of charcoal—used to establish an initial tonal groundwork across the surface. These foundational layers serve not only as a backdrop but as an atmospheric base upon which subsequent tonal shifts can emerge.
The process involves a deliberate use of fixative spray, a material typically employed to stabilize charcoal or pastel on supports such as paper, board, or canvas. In my case, the fixative becomes an essential tool in the layering logic of the drawing itself. Each application secures a specific tonal stage, allowing for new layers to be superimposed without disturbing the ones beneath. This accumulation of fixed layers generates a complex tonal spectrum entirely built on superimposition, particularly effective for constructing the midtones of the image.
This methodology draws a conceptual parallel to intaglio printmaking, particularly the practice of etching. Just as each immersion of the metal plate in acid produces a permanent “bite,” every use of fixative in my process marks a definitive moment in the image’s formation. The drawing thus becomes a palimpsest of decisions—each one irreversible, each one contributing to the overall depth and material history of the piece.
To reach the deepest tonal registers, I introduce a second material: a soft black pastel. Its rich, velvety texture and capacity for full saturation allow for a substantial increase in visual density. Unlike charcoal, which can remain somewhat volatile even when fixed, the pastel adheres with greater intensity, enabling me to articulate the darkest zones of the composition with heightened precision and physicality. The two materials—charcoal and pastel—operate in complementary roles, each enhancing the expressive range of the other.
Illumination within the image is not introduced additively but rather through subtraction. Using a coarse eraser, I actively remove portions of the fixed surface to reveal lighter areas beneath. This subtractive technique does not simply “erase,” but excavates light from within the accumulated layers, creating contrast, focus, and spatial orientation. In this way, the image is constructed through a dialectic of presence and absence, of deposition and removal.
Ultimately, this working method transforms drawing into a materially engaged, temporally layered process. It bridges traditional graphic techniques with contemporary approaches to image-making, foregrounding the physicality of the medium while embedding conceptual reflections on depth, time, and transformation.
The project also finds completion through the presentation of a negative version of the image. This tonal inversion, when paired with its positive counterpart, creates a conceptual and visual dialogue between entry and exit—two mirrored states that can both define the identity of a body, particularly when that body is approached not only as form but as interior space. In this sense, the body becomes analogous to a place, a site, or even a landscape.
The use of tonal inversion serves as a crucial mechanism for bridging the two primary photographic sources presented in this project: cave interiors and gastroscopies. Despite originating from vastly different contexts—one geological, the other medical—both image types explore the depths of enclosed, hidden spaces, made visible only through technological mediation.
Through inversion, the visual language of these images converges. Darkness becomes light, void becomes surface, and negative space becomes a path. This reversal not only enhances their formal connection but also deepens the metaphorical resonance between natural cavities and internal bodily structures. The result is a dynamic visual system in which presence and absence, inside and outside, are constantly shifting positions—allowing the viewer to reconsider the body as both a subject and a container of place.
