The Art of Capturing Self at Exhilarating Heights

In Snap, we explore the impact of a single photograph, sharing stories of how images, both old and new, have been created.

On a clear day in 2008, photographer Ahn Jun perched on the windowsill of a twenty-four-story Manhattan skyscraper, hanging her leg out over the bustling city below.

The South Korean photographer, afraid of heights, embarked on a challenging project that involved capturing dizzying perspectives from the top of skyscrapers. In her self-portrait series, Ahn bravely perched herself on roof corners and building ledges, showcasing either her entire body or just her legs and feet hanging above the sheer drop below.

What motivated the photographer to take such daring shots? It wasn't a sudden desire for thrills, but a deeper exploration of the concept of emptiness. Reflecting on the transition from adolescence to adulthood, Ahn saw the present as a void between the past and future. The moment she first gazed out from the edge of her Manhattan apartment, she felt that sense of emptiness crystallize within her.

“I approached the ledge and looked down, and there was the void,” she recalled.

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Rooftops used to bring Ahn a sense of ease and comfort. She loved working from her rooftop as an English-to-Korean translator on sunny days, feeling the warmth and light winds. This was a nice break from her graduate studies at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.

However, during the financial crisis of 2007, Ahn heard a stranger at a party make a joke about their friend wanting to jump off a rooftop after losing a lot of money in the stock market. This changed her perspective on rooftops.

She started to see rooftops as a dichotomous place. While it was a peaceful place for her, she realized it could also be a place where someone in despair might consider ending their life.

Living life at great heights

For five years, Ahn took photos of herself on rooftops. Sometimes she used a mountain climbing harness for safety, but other times she went without. She never used Photoshop to edit her pictures, preferring to capture the moment as it was. Starting on top of her and her friends' apartment buildings in New York, the project grew over time. She even got permission to shoot at the peak of the 63 Building in Seoul, a symbol of Korea's rapid economic growth. Additionally, she explored rooftops in Hong Kong with the support of its tourism board.

After landing the cover of an issue of the British Journal of Photography in 2013 and receiving online press from outlets like The Guardian, her images went viral.

Ahn Jun in Hong Kong.

Ahn Jun in Hong Kong.

Ahn Jun

But that year, Ahn decided to stop creating the series. She mentioned that the way viewers were interpreting her images had changed significantly due to the popularity of Instagram in the early 2010s. Initially, she had viewed her project as a form of "performance without audience." However, she observed that on the emerging social media platform, her images became part of the ongoing trend of showcasing life on camera. Additionally, internet users began linking her images to the risky "rooftopping" trend, where individuals climb tall buildings without safety gear to take selfies at the top.

Ahn shared that she started receiving a flood of emails. While some contained positive feedback, others were critical of her work or even sexually harassing her.

She decided to move on to other projects, although some prints have been displayed at recent events such as Paris Photo and the Daegu Photography Biennale in South Korea. Last fall, her works were showcased. In April, she will feature some of her pieces in an exhibition at the Irie Taikichi Memorial Museum of Photography in Nara, Japan.

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A decade later, Ahn's early self-portrait series continues to influence her later work. She has delved into the themes of time, space, and gravity, viewing life as a "process of free fall." During her PhD studies at Hongik University in Seoul, where she graduated in 2017, she developed an interest in high-speed photography's ability to capture images that challenge the laws of physics.

Since 2021, a retrospective of Ahn's work titled "On Gravity" has been showcased internationally. The exhibition explores the concept of finding beauty and meaning in the face of inevitability. Ahn believes that individuals can choose to either accept or resist this inevitability. She reflects, "For most of us, our life is somewhere in between."

Editor's P/S:

Ahn Jun's daring photography series, captured from dizzying heights, is a powerful exploration of emptiness and the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Her images, initially intended as a personal reflection, became a viral sensation, highlighting the dichotomous nature of rooftops as both a place of solace and despair. Ahn's decision to abandon the series due to its misinterpretation on social media is a testament to the complexities of artistic expression in the digital age.

The article's discussion of Ahn's subsequent work, particularly her interest in high-speed photography and the concept of gravity, suggests that her early self-portraiture laid the foundation for her ongoing exploration of time, space, and the human condition. Her belief that individuals can choose to either accept or resist inevitability resonates deeply, reminding us that even in the face of life's challenges, we have the power to shape our own path.