It should not be surprising that in every art exhibition there is an interaction between the exhibition space and the art on exhibit. It is amazing what art can do to walls. When successful, it involves a fine balance between the art and the exhibition space.

The exhibition, Bending Light: Photographs by Seth de Roulet, is monumental in scope, transformative and expansive. Its atmosphere shimmers with a silvery light. But what does this current BNG exhibition do to the gallery? It makes it seem bigger.

Seth de Roulet, although known as a photographer of surf, is in his BNG exhibition primarily an artist of light. I suppose, in a way, all photographers are, but in this case light is paramount. It’s the element first perceived before anything else.

My initial response upon entering the gallery was this sense of sensational light. I was enveloped in it. Nevertheless, waves are the predominant subject that bends the light, hence the exhibition title.

Light waves, water waves, sand waves, even a sense of wind waves; these interconnections are, in some measure, what makes this show so cohesive.

Given Bermuda’s location as an oceanic island, such an exhibition as this, where water, waves and surf dominate, seems appropriate.

Except for the display in the Charles Zuill Project Space, where examples of de Roulet’s surf magazine work is showcased in full colour, the rest of the exhibition is monochromatic.

We speak about black-and-white photography, and we have a sense of what that means and understand that black and white are the extreme ends of the grey scale with its myriad of greys. In this show the greys seem silvery.

Shape Rectangle Silvery; the photographic prints are silver gelatin prints; they are silvery for a reason.

Regarding the monochromes, de Roulet’s photographs are big, very big; some as large as 40 x 60 inches, exclusive of mat and frame. They are also grainy. Back in the day, I recall grain in photography as a negative, but de Roulet has made graininess a virtue. He celebrates it.

Considering grain, de Roulet’s grainy photographs seem more like drawings or even Pointillist paintings, which from a distance become waves within waves, but close up become abstracts. Both are equally exciting.

I asked the artist why he had restricted his exhibition in the main galleries to black and white. He said that this is his aesthetic preference.

It was the German polymath, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe who suggested that limitations bring out the master. Certainly, limiting the main part of this exhibition to monochrome photography, was a masterful decision and certainly it has brought to the forefront the artist’s masterpieces.

As we walk the exhibition, we will doubtless discover favourites. I did; one being Off the Rock. It’s a curving, breaking, tunnel wave through which is a distant view of land beyond, but see the grain up close. It’s like viewing details in a drawing.

Nearby is Dunes, another favourite, it pictures a sand wave and, like sea waves, it depicts small, ripple-like waves on larger sand waves. The texture resembles that of brain coral.

One more photo, Dark Falls, is of a waterfall in a cave. The grain in the waterfall just about pops off the paper, it is so pronounced. This, of all the works in the show comes across most as hand made.

I need to point out that all these black-and-white photographs are a one off, meaning each is a single print that will never be repeated. Each is a unique work of art.

De Roulet says that generally 35mm Kodak T-MAX 3200 black-and-white negative film is not used for such large-scale prints, but the combination creates a uniquely textured grain.

But what does it take to create such a show? First and foremost, there is the photographer, his eye and his daring. He composes his compositions in the camera, without cropping. That takes split-second decisions and probably some failures, but it is the artist who first recognises success when he sees it.

Then in de Roulet’s case, it involves his working with a printer who has the experience and equipment to make such large photographs by hand in a darkroom. The printed photographs were produced by Hank’s Photographic Services in New York.

Referring to the exhibition catalogue, we learn that through this printing service, Seth de Roulet and master printer Steve Rifkin worked closely together to make such amazing prints.

The photographs, once printed, were then framed in New York and then packed in crates for shipment to Bermuda. The frames are simple, white and minimal, allowing the photographs to be the centre of attention.

Such an exhibition as this is a major undertaking with all kinds of time-consuming, behind-the-scenes activity, which in the end provides the general public the enjoyment, enlightenment and other cultural benefits.

With the arrival of the pictures at the gallery, it was the curator, Eve Godet Thomas, and her curatorial team who then arranged the exhibit; deciding what went where and then the task of hanging the show. That in itself is no mean feat. After all, the success of the show, in part, depends on how the show is put together.

Putting on an exhibition such as this is a time-consuming, complicated process, but in the end, it is a spectacular, beautiful exhibition.

Bending Light is sponsored by anonymous donors. We are grateful.

• Bending Light Photographs by Seth de Roulet continues through September 2025. Admission to the Bermuda National Gallery is free, made possible by The Christian Humann Foundation. The gallery is open Tuesday to Friday 10am to 4pm and Saturdays 10am to 2pm

***

Both the Bermuda National Gallery and the Bermuda Society of Arts are showcasing art by our young people. At BSoA it's the annual Secondary and Middle School Art Exhibition, while at the BNG is the Junior Biennial. Both exhibitions are impressive.

In recent years, the annual schools art exhibition at BSoA seems to be getting better and better and this, the first BNG Junior Biennial is the beneficiary of what appears to be some incredibly able art teaching.

Incidentally, research indicates that a strong arts programme in elementary and secondary education is beneficial in learning generally, especially in academics.

This is understandable, as learning utilises all our senses, visual, audial, tactile, you name it. Take the visual; seeing is a learnt ability, as is hearing, as is any other sensibility. Even with those who are handicapped, such as with blindness. Learning Braille requires a greater sensitivity to the tactile and that is a learnt ability. Indeed, being handicapped in one sensibility, seems to strengthen other sensibilities.

Whatever the case, the fact that right now, both exhibitions are notably good should spur us adults on to go and see these exhibitions. After all any community worth its salt, will be involved in the education of the young and both BSoA and BNG are special kinds of educational institutions.

I recommend these exhibitions.

• The Bermuda Society of Arts Show continues through March 12. The Bermuda National Gallery Junior Biennial runs through May 3