Inside the Empty Interval

Inside the Empty Interval

Photo Access / 5th March - 11th April 2026

Exhibition Text - Chin-Jie Melodie Liu

A colour-filled doorway greets audiences from the outside, tinting the entrance with hues of yellow and green. Reminiscent of stained-glass windows, this vibrant encounter seeps into the gallery, where Lisa Stonham’s exhibition Inside the Empty Interval, transforms photo access with life-sized sculptural works that challenge the photographic medium and seek to capture the ephemeral.

Abstract duo-tone pillars and sheets of small, suspended panels occupy the space, with faint streaks of light appearing on their surface. These distinct strokes are photographic transfers of Stonham’s study of light. Made in blackout rooms, the images are created in collaboration with nature. Instead of producing an exterior image in the manner of camera obscura, she patiently waits for the passing of light to document glints leaking through the cracks of blinds. Akin to a wildlife photographer, working in the environment, Stonham attempts to capture the presence of light and its temporality. 

There is an intimacy in the uncovering of the ether through the repeated act of durational but active looking. This isolated exercise relies on an understanding of the cyclical patterns of nature, of which Stonham has become attuned to. Through years of accumulated observations, she recognises seasonal exposures and their angles, knowing when to expect them and the forms they take shape in. The collaboration is delicate and unpredictable as the motion of light is weather-dependent, never manifesting in anticipated ways. 

The colour variations of each piece suggest the subject is not static. As elements invisible to the naked eye, the hues act as timestamps, registering the gradual and continuous shifts. The camera here is merely an optical instrument used to process the transient qualities of light, enhancing the diffractions appearing on the walls. 

The recording of the unseen and mundane is refreshing in the age of immediacy and overwhelming visual stimulation. The tones and scale of the panels draw one into a contemplative and unrushed space. Their reflective planes enhance this further, allowing the viewer, the installation, and the gallery to be visible simultaneously. This considered presentation defines Stonham’s practice as much as her relationship with nature, where the work is not viewed passively, but experienced. Each glance generates a new composition that is determined by the audience’s interaction and shaped by the artificial lighting and coloured streams from the entrance. Identifiable details, such as power points, are left intentionally, hinting at the domestic origins of these seemingly untraceable photographs. These figurative items situate the viewer into Stonham’s perspective, offering a glimpse into the details of the rooms.

Inside the Empty Interval draws attention to the seemingly intangible intricacies surrounding us. Stonham’s serene disruption of conventional displays invites us to rethink how we position ourselves in time and space.