Ascend by Hosea Benjamin
Explore Mondoir Studio
Medium: photography
Dimensions: 20 x 28 in
Edition production year: 2019
Edition of 10
Price: $390.00 USD
Status: available
Ascend—not in haste, but in knowing. Each rise a vow, each breath a flame. From root to sky, the soul unwinds, casting off shadows stitched by time. It is the quiet rebellion of becoming more—a flight not of wings, but of will, lifting the self into becoming.
Why collect this work?
A narrow shaft of light divides sea and sky, turning the central figure’s apparent suspension into a metaphor of ascent while swimmers retain a counterweight of bodily effort.
- Benjamin’s profile describes his Nigerian photographic practice as joining portraiture, symbolism and research to address memory, identity and culture. The title and accompanying text frame this image specifically through deliberate self-transformation.
- In the supplied image, a small figure appears high above the horizon with arms extended inside the bright column. Three partly immersed figures occupy the lower field, establishing distinct zones of elevation and immersion without explaining their relationship.
- Catalogued as a 2019 photograph measuring 20 by 28 inches, Ascend uses strong monochrome contrast and central alignment to isolate the airborne silhouette. The captured-instant appearance gives an implausible scene provisional credibility, while its construction remains undisclosed.
- Ascend is particularly useful for examining how photography makes transformation legible through scale, verticality and bodily position, yet preserves uncertainty about whether the event is witnessed, imagined or symbolic.
About the Artist
Hosea Benjamin
Hosea Benjamin is an artist on Mondoir Studio. Artistic discipline: photography. Based in Lekki, NG.
Nationality: Nigerian
My work explores memory, identity, and culture through Afrography, a philosophy I created to document African stories with depth and intention.
