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Joseph Michael
Joseph Michael is a visual artist and photographer, best known for creating large-scale projections on iconic buildings.
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Joseph Michael blends art and science, pushing the boundaries of what technology can achieve. Joseph cemented his reputation as a master of time-lapse photography in 2013, when he shot and exhibited Dark Cloud / White Light, a series of 24-hour time-lapse landscapes, which has been viewed by over 130,000 New Zealanders. In 2019, his Voices for the Future installation showed powerful visuals of an iceberg slowly crashing down the side of the United Nations General Assembly building in New York.
Joseph’s work has evolved into the largely uncharted area of digital twinning natural environments. In 2020, he developed the augmented reality project Amazon – Raised Up Sky. Joseph created this artwork by digitally scanning trees in the Amazonian rainforest and New Zealand, and talking with scientists, artists and traditional leaders about our physical, biological and cultural links with trees. Amazon – Raised Up Sky was presented at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery.
In 2022, Joseph took part in another expedition to the Amazon and visited Benki Piyãko, who was a key figure he interviewed for Amazon – Raised Up Sky. Following this visit, Joseph launched a web-based educational tool called The Majestic Samaúma. This webpage features a full-page interactive visual of a real samaúma tree, which was scanned using drone photogrammetry. As viewers scroll the page, it reveals different sections of the tree – from its canopy branches through to its internal nutrient flow and relationship with soil microbes.
The Majestic Samaúma encourages viewers to see the connections between the rich natural environments of New Zealand and the Amazon, and between ourselves, the trees and our environment. It is now being used in classrooms throughout New Zealand, and by the Asháninka community to educate its stakeholders about the precious environment it is fighting to protect.
Joseph’s work is heavily influenced by the environment. He is a fellow of the Edmund Hillary Fellowship, which is committed to solving the world’s toughest challenges using Kiwi innovation. He is also the director of Auckland University of Technology’s Art Science Lab, which is a multidisciplinary studio where creators, innovators and industry experts work on real-world environmental challenges, and creative director at Ārko - a digital storytelling agency.
Published 02 November 2023
"By pushing technology beyond its design limits, we create something that allows people to experience the awe and reverence with which we should be treating our environment.”
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