Installation shot from the Click! Photography Festival in October 2023 at the Fruit
I will be reprising the exhibit originally installed at the Fruit as part of October’s Click! Photography Festival (pictured above). Our Disappearing Darkness is part of a 2021/2022 Fulbright project about our rapidly disappearing experience of natural night and darkness. Archaeological evidence of reflective quartz found at prehistoric sites indicates they may have been visited in low light or at night. Cornwall is particularly rich in prehistoric sites, and I spent the better part of a year there photographing megalithic structures and stone circles by moonlight or starlight, or both in combination with my own illumination—all with the intention of giving present-day people an impression of that prehistoric world. Though it is our evolutionary inheritance and critical to our and every other creature's well-being, darkness and night are increasingly being brightly lit out of existence. Many people and organizations are taking this on with determination and hope. I highly recommend perusing the International Dark Sky organization's website listing of certified dark sky parks, sanctuaries, and reserves. Lots of other information, resources, and networking opportunities are there too.
MJ Sharp
Our Disappearing Darkness
Web gallery of images in the exhibit / October installation images
@ The Fruit 305 South Dillard Street, Durham NC 27701 (directions below)
Tuesday & Wednesday, December 5th & 6th, noon—7pm
And there's MORE! Co-sponsored by The Fruit and the Resource Center for Women in Ministry in the South, I will be a 2024 Artist-in-Residence and produce a series of pop-up exhibits hosted by The Fruit over the coming year, including personal material from the past decade. Future pop-up exhibits will be announced on this website and on Instagram, or you can sign up for the mailing list.
Directions to the Fruit: Find us at the intersection of Dillard and Ramseur, near Durham Cider Works and before
Ponysaurus, about four blocks east of DPAC and American Tobacco. During the work day there is free on-street parking in the area and there are a few spaces on-site. Evening and weekend parking is available in the County Human Services lot across the street.