Sea Stacks in the Mist - Limited Edition 1 of 15 Photograph

AWARDS: 2018 International Photography Awards: Honorable Mention x4 in the Professional Fine Art category BIOGRAPHY: A native of the Pacific Northwest, Rodrigo studied mathematics before discovering his love for philosophy and, eventually, photography. Taking to heart the ancient Greco-Roman view that philosophy was a way of life and not simply theoretical ideas, he began excursions into the forests, mountains and coast as exercises in philosophical contemplation. An avid reader and student of philosophy, Rodrigo derives much of his inspiration from the works of the ancient Stoics and Epicureans. His work focuses on the flow of time, change, impermanence, life/death, and tranquility. Rodrigo Etcheto lives and works in Olympia Washington. ARTIST STATEMENT: We do not experience reality directly, only our impression of it. Reality is infinite. What we perceive through our senses is an image of reality. Art should not depict reality as our senses perceive it, that would be a mere image of an image. Art should depict the ideal Form… that emotional truth which we can only see with our mind. Emotion is what is most real. Emotion is the most important fact about reality. Without emotion, we wouldn't have the feeling of existing. And without that feeling, how could we say that anything exists at all? Our own emotions are the only thing we can be sure of. What the rest of reality is, we cannot truly say. But even though our knowledge is limited and imperfect, we must try to understand the true nature of reality. My work is a contemplation of the true nature of things. My subject matter is the natural world, which shows us all we need to know in order to be happy. If we look deeply enough at any part of the world, no matter how small, we can see all of the principles of nature at work. My works focuses on the flow of time, the conscious nature of all matter and the inseparability of all things. I take all of reality to be one single living process. Only one thing truly exists, and that 'thing' is not actually a 'thing' but a constantly-changing process. Everything is intertwined and nothing exists separately from anything else. Nothing stands still, everything changes continuously. Everything is imbued with mind, everything is alive, everything flows into everything else. All of reality can be seen in the largest landscape or the smallest fragment because everything is fundamentally the same.