Into the Heartless Light of Darkness

In December of 2023, the renowned photographic artist Emmanuel Santos travelled to Israel to document the profound and ongoing impacts of the October 7 massacre by Hamas, which claimed 1200 lives and resulted in hundreds being taken hostage.

With raw intensity, he documented what he witnessed on the ground: poignant memorials, trauma sites, and lives irreparably altered. The result is a powerful visual narrative of a nation – of Jewish, Muslim, Druze, Bedouin, Christian and other communities – grappling with the lasting effects of violence.

While the photographs are the work of one individual experiencing the devastation firsthand, they resonate deeply with our shared humanity. The exhibition is a space of reflection, contemplation, and hope that one day, there will be peace.

About the Photographer
Emmanuel Santos is a Melbourne-based documentary and art photographer. He was a photographer for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in the Philippines before moving to Sydney in 1982. Since the 1980s, his work has focused on the Jewish Diaspora, which he has photographed worldwide. His photographs have been displayed in spaces such as Bibliothèque Nationale de France, the Jewish Museum of Australia, the State Library of Victoria, the National Gallery of Victoria, the Victorian Arts Centre, the National Library of Australia and the Sydney Jewish Museum.