The fumarole

by The Raw World Atlas

A column of white steam bursts from a slope of loose rock and rolls upwards out of the picture. Around the point where it emerges, the ground is dark grey and wet, whilst the rest of the slope consists of rust-brown scree, bleached white patches and boulders of all sizes. At the bottom right, low green shrubs cling to the edge of the heat.

This is a fumarole near Noboribetsu in Hokkaido, Japan: an opening in the ground through which volcanic steam and gases escape. The colours all around tell the same story as the steam. Grey where the rock is constantly wet and hot; white and yellow where minerals have been deposited; brown and rust-coloured where iron has oxidised.

The portrait format follows the steam from its source to the top of the frame, lending the image a strong vertical movement. It is well suited to narrow wall spaces, stairwells and corridors, or as part of a series featuring other landscape views. The contrast between the soft white steam and the rough, earthy texture works well from both a distance and up close. The fine details of the scree and the volume of the steam are shown to their best advantage on matt fine art paper.