Neon Ripples Through a Skull in Long-Exposure Photos

Image: Paul Hollingworth via

The human skull and head defined by light is the subject for photographer Paul Hollingworth's Artificial Anatomy 2, the second part of an ongoing series that explores the human form through texture, volume, and surface. Hollingworth explains on his Behance page that the images were created through long exposures taken at various intervals of a reflective skull lit up by a piece of electroluminescent wire.

"Lasting around 10 to 15 seconds, each exposure captures the movement of the flashing wire as it passes across the surface," Hollingworth says. "As the speed, frequency and position of the wire is adjusted, so, too, is the definition and complexity of each image."

The results, which show the rippling contours of the light urning the human head into a neon mask, form a series of stunning anatomical portraits along with a video made of clips from the session which highlights some of the processes.

Image: Paul Hollingworth 

Image: Paul Hollingworth 

Image: Paul Hollingworth 

Image: Paul Hollingworth 

The project follows on from Hollingworth's previous experiment, Artificial Anatomy, for which the artist poureddifferent colored paints onto the model of a skull, before compositing the results to create syrupy human heads.

You can check out more of Paul Hollingworth's work on his Behance page.

Related:

Get Turned On at an Art Show Filled with Neon

Behold the Ceramic Neon Malt Liquor of Your Dreams

Neon Retrospective Asks "Have You Read the Writing on the Wall?"