Pygmalion Karatzas
Architectural, Fine Art & Commercial Photography

Image Copyright: Rights-Managed © Pygmalion Karatzas.

Edition Type: Limited edition print.

Fine Art Prints: Images are available in gallery-quality fine art prints on various sizes, media and framing options.

Image Licensing: High-resolution images are available for editorial and limited commercial use.

Inquire here for further information on usage licensing and prints.

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Concept:

The battle of Salamis between the Greek and Persian fleet is one of the most famous battles in history, with some historians arguing that if the Persians had won, it would have effectively change the course of Western Civilisation as we know it. On July 2017, the Laboratory of Marine Geology and Physical Oceanography of the University of Patras, led by prof. George Papatheodorou, was asked to assist the archaeological survey of the area in search of findings from the ancient battle, using their side scan sonar and sub-bottom profilers technology. Parallel to photographically documenting their expedition, I took a series of long exposure images of the shipwrecks alongside the Kynosoura peninsula. The juxtaposition of shipwrecks from various eras in the backdrop of the functioning Salamis shipyards, coupled with the cutting-edge technologies used to survey the ancient mooring site, gave the inspiration for the ‘Salamis shipwrecks’. The long exposure technique uses light to create images not visible to the naked eye, similarly to the sonic pulses using sound to create images of the seafloor. The collected visual data are then processed and analysed to provide decisive information for the survey and also to serve as archival documents for further studies. In a similar manner, the raw long exposure images are further post-processed to add visual presence, depth and a unifying minimalist underscore, fusing the boundaries between topographic/representational and expressionistic/pictorial iconography in its exploration of the integral perspective. The intentions of documenting and providing an aesthetic experience are layered with our collective interpretation of historic symbols set in the complex plural world of socio-economic systems.

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