The hustle and bustle of urban (and suburban) life can get to you after a while. You start to feel crowded, hemmed in by the people, the noise, the traffic, and the buildings. Sometimes you just need to get away from it all. But that’s not always a realistic option.
So we’re here to present a vicarious alternative: the work of Tiina Törmänen, a Finnish photographer who captures the vast, icy beauty of the Arctic tundra. There, human contact is rare and the sky looms huge and distant.
Her shots capture the wild, but fragile, beauty of the region, but also the immense sense of solitude the place brings.
While the shots of the landscape alone are enough to conjure the feeling of solitude, Törmänen goes the extra step by incorporating lone human figures into her photos.
These are self-portraits, taken with a timer, revealing that when shooting, Törmänen herself is all alone in this gorgeous but unforgiving land.
But the sense of being alone isn’t frightening or unpleasant.
Instead, it’s meditative and awe-inspiring, and reminds us that while humans are a massive force, we’re still very small compared to our planet.
The photos were taken in Sapmi, also known as Lapland, a region in the northernmost areas of Scandinavia and western Russia.
Because this region is relatively unpopulated, pollution is minimal, allowing millions of stars to be visible.
Even during the day, though, the landscape is still majestic.
(via Twisted Sifter)
You can see much more of Törmänen’s beautiful photography on her website, as well as on her Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, and Behance pages.
