Inspired after writing about Antoine De Saint-Exupéry’s Wind, Sand and Stars, I was fortunate to come across Illusion of Light: A Journey into the Unseen, a beautifully shot time-lapse film trailer showcasing the night skies of the Sierra Nevada mountains and southwest deserts of the US. Watching this teaser for the full film expected to debut in 2017, I began to see why we as a species etch shapes and attach meanings to the wheeling heavens, why we constantly appeal to it for guidance and direction, and why we can be so awed as to dedicate our whole lives to teasing apart its mysteries.
“Brad Goldpaint spent 3 years of creative exploration crafting visual metaphors which reflect aspects of existence that are often hidden from everyday sight. We interact with these miracles on a daily basis yet we are amazed at the infinite magnitude of our planet. We encourage you to raise your eyes towards the night sky. Explore. Realize you are a part of the illusion and the universe is a part of you.”
As an urbanite who lives in places inundated with light pollution, I rarely have the opportunity to take notice of the night sky. But it is still nonetheless there. Illusion of Lights reminds me that an unsurpassed splendour exists, available nightly and costing nothing, should I choose to seek it out: From the hood of a car up in the mountains; on a beach after sunset during a new moon; at a campsite when the din of coal fires have faded away. Just go, look up, and see. It’s worth it.
Ekostories 