The Creation of the Self V

by Ahmad Khoshniat

In "The Creation of the Self V", Ahmad Khoshniat reflects on the fragile moment of encountering the self through the relationship between light and shadow. A hand reaches toward its own projected image, suggesting an attempt to connect with a reflection that is both familiar and intangible. The distance between the hand and the shadow becomes a space of tension, recognition, and uncertainty, where the act of reaching transforms into a meditation on identity and perception. The gesture subtly recalls Michelangelo’s "The Creation of Adam", yet the encounter here occurs not between divine and human figures, but between a body and its own projection. The shadow functions as a symbolic double — an image shaped by light that resembles the self while remaining unreachable. Rather than presenting the shadow as absence alone, the work treats it as an extension of inner presence, memory, and psychological reflection. Through the contrast of illumination and darkness, the photograph meditates on self-discovery, perception, and the unstable boundary between presence and absence. The suspended instant before contact becomes central to the work, emphasizing the emotional and philosophical distance that can exist between the self and its reflected image.