Folds Of Time

Amina El-Edroos captures fleeting moments

Big or small, every object around us has its beauty and an intriguing aura; it’s a matter of concentrating and feeling those brief intimate moments. Learning to capture a photograph with a DSLR is convenient; what makes an image beautiful is capturing the fleeting instance that completes a picture and freezing its aura in time.

Amina’s work centres on such fleeting moments. They have so much to say; telling their story and penning down these feelings is crucial to her. A major source of her inspiration is the gorgeous skyscapes and the idea that we all live under the same sky yet it is so varied that for every person, it is a different story. Its fullness is never the same. After filming, Amina reads the images for underlying symbolic languages and intimate nuances, and then manipulates them to create new perspectives.

She loves the summer days as she can capture the golden hour; the naturally changing colour gradations of the sunset striking everything between the buildings and plants. Amina’s works have a unique personality of their own, a hint of shine in the minimal, as if the viewer is enveloped by serenity.

“Creativity involves the depth of a mind and many, many depths of unconsciousness”, said Oliver Sacks. Art is a method for artists to express themselves by telling stories or communicating ideas in an indirect or direct manner. Amina’s recent work comes from a specific place; the numerous changes in her life have pushed her to express herself more openly. Sometimes you have to root yourself in these familiarities and uncertainties, as well as the feeling of being at home.

Written by Zainab Burhan

Image: Tracing Home, Amina El-Edroos, edition 1/7, giclee print, all copyrights retained by the artist 2022.