What will our world be like without emotions, and will anyone miss them? This question arises from concerns about life in an era of constant digital connectivity, where emotions may be losing their significance. Visual artist and author Eva Petrič explores this theme in her work, a hybrid of a photography book and an interactive art object. One of the most endangered emotions today is longing, essential for the creation of great literature, especially poetry. This emotion serves as the central theme of Petrič’s multilayered narrative. The book, with its square format, hard cover, and 355 pages, features 100 visual aphorisms and 163 text images, blending literary storytelling with a contemporary email diary and a visual dictionary of emotions on the brink of extinction. The text itself intertwines images and sentences, with colorful paper enhancing the visual experience. By illustrating figures in both material and immaterial forms, the book invites viewers to engage in personal storytelling. Petrič describes her staged photographs as puppets unaware of their shadows—the true emotions that influence them. The interplay between images and viewers creates a fusion of narratives, revealing a new dimension where shadows and bodies transform, enhancing the emotional experience.
