Mandala de Tokio 1 Photograph - Limited Edition of 1

Even though science describes the existence of multiple dimensions, some of which are hidden, we generally refer to a four-dimensional universe, with three spatial and one temporal dimension, all of which are captured in the photographic image. Its planimetric elements manifest the first two, width and length; while depth of field allows us to recognize volume and girth and the third dimension. Time, the fourth, is easily recognizable as photographic images are by definition a record of moments past, and yet they are also always present, even as change arrives upon its subjects. The interaction of the four dimensions plays a fundamental role in the photographic work of Roberto Lombana. For instance, in some of his pictures, Lombana focuses on places where art and history are the protagonists and uses wide-angle lenses to revise them from a contemporary point-of-view. Settings and buildings that, he says, have already fulfilled their purpose because they create more memories than expectations, yet still teach us to trust in man and reason. In his latest work, Lombana uses temporality to point towards the future because even though his are still records of moments past, the inherent technological ethos of the places and elements he captures, and the way he fashions the images through digital technology, turns them into harbingers of a future coming at us as technological speeds, fascinating and insufferable at the same time. Most of the images in this series were taken in Japan, a country known as much for its respect for ancient tradition as for the voracious velocity of its development. In some of the images, a city explodes into beams of light that hurl themselves at the observer; in others, the kinetic energy he captures reminds us of the accelerated speeds at which we now go through our lives. Other images display limited spaces overflowing with people, a clear reference to the forthcoming troubles of our growing population; then, as if trying to correct them, he fashions out of aerial photography modern day mandalas that point towards the kind of harmony that is imperative for mankind, or lets the buildings themselves point towards the heavens, reminding us we once knew which way was up, and yet are on the verge of forgetting.