Searching for Mu
Searching for Mu
CREDITS
The photographic work of Paul Cupido (b. 1972, The Netherlands) revolves around the principle of Mu: a Japanese word that could be translated as ‘does not have’, but is actually open to countless interpretations. Mu can be considered a void, albeit one with potential.
Searching for Mu is both a personal and a universal exploration: losing loved ones, growing older, having children. Cupido felt the urge to journey as far away from home as possible, in order to retrieve and restore himself. The destination was Japan, a country he finds himself longing to return to, again and again. But the quest transcends the simple idea of seeking.
Cupido demonstrates a sense of doubt here, an exploration without a set goal, a longing without a destination. Deprived of specific intentions, what he depicts are not so much documentations of certain places or people, but rather the intensity of his relationship to the world, and vice versa. For indeed, Mu is both part of an inner life, and of our external surroundings.
Want to see the work of Paul Cupido in print? Then check out the Talent section of GUP #57 – in stores now.
