Photo Friday with Caleb Charland

Caleb Charland’s work is the quintessential pairing of photography and science. The Maine artist is inspired by the mysteries of day to day life, and presents his drop-jawed viewers with stunning art and physics lessons. Many of the experiments exhibited in his photographs may be familiar to us from elementary school, a time where we were perhaps less equipped to appreciate the beauty of nature’s order. Through his work, Charland reminds us of science’s wonders, and surprises us with images that are even sometimes difficult to discern.

In his artistic statement, he notes that he is interested in how we measure and understand our place in the world. Simultaneously, I think Charland reminds us of the beauty of things in which humans have no part, other than playing spectator.

On his site, he includes an Einstein quote that can help us better understand the motivations behind his work, and the fascination we all have with the intersection of art and science:

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.”