Reconciling Beauty with Criticality: New Landscapes

For December's paper, I was tasked with a semester summary. I've been thinking a lot about my night long exposure landscapes (beauty) and how these images might connect with my non-paradise postcard project (conceptual). Here is a written section pulled from my semester review:

In general, the long exposure night images range from abstract studies of luminosity and color to more precise renderings of Oahu’s coastline. For much of the semester, the long exposures felt like a separate project from the postcard series. However, over time, some connections between the two projects have emerged. For one, many of the most interesting long exposures are the ones that capture human-made light illuminating the water or skyline. The images that at first were made to represent a more authentic, pristine, or natural “paradise” are in fact affected by city lights, streetlights, or in some cases bold and direct ocean spotlights.  A number of images also display trails of light caused by air and water traffic. Is it possible that the strongest long exposures, both aesthetically and conceptually, are the ones that display the intersection of the natural environment with the artificial? Perhaps the “real” Hawaii is more accurately portrayed by the combination of its stunningly beautiful natural landscape amidst its manufactured counterpart? 

I am also interested in considering the long exposures as entirely separate entities from Hawaii. What potential do they hold in moving beyond the idea of paradise specifically in Hawaii and in instead representing larger ideas about human interaction within the natural landscape?