Jules Cleophat: Above and Below the Shambles
By Kevin Susienka

It’s 2:22 am and the ground is barely in sight. From such a height, it is easy to see just how far the rays of the street lamps below actually reach, each one dimming toward the edge of its intense circle of light, pitch darkness between it and its mathematically placed successor on the next section of sidewalk. It’s impossible to see this effect from the ground, which means the majority of people will never see it. Native Bostonian photographer Jules Cleophat fully understands this. It’s precisely the reason why he went up to look at his world from such a unique vantage point in the first place.

Cleophat’s photography, while it can be interpreted at face value and with high esteem, comes from a place in this world far more complex than art. It exists at the impact point of art, adventure, loss, recovery and philosophy. It’s meant to go deeper than the depths and higher than the heights he’s documented in this collection. “In September of 2021, I climbed halfway up my first jib,” Cleophat recalls, bearing an important piece of his soul that we all get to share now. “My motivation was to get as close as I could to the sky again – and hopefully have my brother see me shining, trying to reach him and say hi to him while he looks at me from above – from the heavens.”

Jules Cleophat lost his younger brother, Niles, in 2020. The impact it has had on his life is immeasurable at this point. After a serious bout with the process of grieving, he chose to ascend high above and far below the shambles of American life in search of his peace of mind –  and he found it – thanks to his brother. Although nothing about what happened changes, Jules takes solace in the platform for his art that Niles inspired every time the shutter on his camera clicks.

With this knowledge of what went into making the images in this compilation – from the bereavement to the gathering of courage to the strength to maintain it to the daring attempts to manifest it – the results become increasingly extraordinary with each glance at any of them. When viewed as a full collection, each photo is an important piece in the construction of a fitting tribute – and the evidence of Cleophat’s coming of age as a photographer with an important agenda.

Jules’ life as an artist, while therapeutic in the face of loss, is also a response – a full-on rebellion – to the mental conditioning human beings receive from day one, whether they want to or not. He refers to it as “ the societal norms we are taught when we start to grow up. Think about kids. They reach for the stars and want to do incredible and crazy things. Kids want to be astronauts, create universes, and do all types of things we don’t think about because we are more focused on surviving.” Cleophat’s process of creating images can easily be perceived as both incredible and crazy because they were made on the outskirts of what is considered safe and normal in modern society. His adventures – and the results that end up on his camera roll – are anything but normal.

If the boundary that mainstream society dwells in is the ground level and the inside of any structure above that level, then Jules Cleophat’s work with a camera is made in the scary places outside of those confines – above and below it – a fairly obvious departure from the ordinary, especially the photos shot from above. After all, not every city skyline image captured is taken from the actual skyline. To be at eye level with the clock at the top of Boston’s Custom House, as he is in “Tranquility”, is an experience that very few people will ever have, and there is good reason for that. The logistics of the situation which, suffice to say, do not involve a helicopter or a drone, are the magical and very confidential ingredients of Jules Cleophat’s process. They break every rule regarding what is supposed to be comfortable, and yet, they bring him peace. Jules chose the title “Tranquility” because “big cities are always in madness. This image captures the craziness of cars buzzing by below and the lights of buildings shining, but it feels calm because of the point of view the city is seen from.”

What Jules has compiled in this inaugural collection for Rosewater is a series of images that tell stories most of us will never have the gumption to live out. “Watch Your Step” captures the essence of the thrill involved in making photographs of this sort better than almost any image in the set. The consequences are easily felt. Although, let’s face it. They all have that affect. They are enjoyed with awe, sprinkled with a bit of anxiety. In “Office Life”, Cleophat is portraying one of two things – perhaps both. He is either showing us what we look like in our offices or he is presenting us with what the view looks like from his office. Either way, the value is there. “Above the Blue” is a bold product of daring. The structure in the immediate foreground provides all the perspective needed to realize just how massive the rest of the composition is and just how thrilling it must be to make such a photograph.

The images in this compilation that take place below ground level speak to the progress of a deeply personal journey. Take, for example, “Uncharted”. There is no way that the tunnel depicted is, in fact, uncharted. People and machines plotted and oversaw its construction. It is a finished product. However, for the person in the mid-ground, shining red light throughout the fabricated cavern, there is no point of reference to that time period and there is no tour guide. There’s only an infatuation with going somewhere new and documenting the process of the exploration. The way the red light reflects off of almost every single aspect of this photo is what makes it special because Cleophat has captured the process of unfamiliar territory becoming familiar with every new space that the light hits. This calls to mind the idea that every person on this planet, in one way or another, navigates the uncharted with a single beam of light, red or otherwise, shining it on new people and places along the way.

“Uncharted Territory”, in a completely different fashion, portrays a similar excursion into the belly of an urban beast. The spot is well-lit, although decayed in many ways, which leads us to infer that people have been there. However, the subject leaning against the column and the person behind the lens have not. Therein lies the adventure. “Watch the Bend” solidifies such a quest, a bold-faced metaphor for the unrefined act of living. Not knowing what is coming next, yet being mindful of what could occur, is a life navigating tool passed down through the ages. The image evokes a willingness to see what’s next in a rather eerie environment – to embrace the unknown and provide an authentic replica of the experience. The beauty of this is that it’s not enough for Jules Cleophat to simply explore. He chooses to provide well-metered, visually pleasing souvenirs of just how worthwhile each leg of the journey is.

Jules Cleophat’s images are not exactly an invitation to go where barely anyone else dares to, which he elaborates on briefly. “I’m not really here to shed light or tell people how to do what I do,” he states matter of factly. “I want people to see my art and me as a human who just wants to create art no matter my situation.“ The situation, in several ways, has been difficult over the past few years for him. His recent work, both figuratively and literally, has been both a slow steady rise above those difficulties and a descent into the depths of who he really is as a person. Being an artist has provided an irreplaceable form of therapy to cope with both his loss and the overall condition of this world.

It’s almost certain that the world is just as dangerous at the ground level as it is above and below, but this selection of images is evidence of the beauty that can be found with a change of perspective, despite the risks. Art, when done properly, is supposed to be daring. For Jules Cleophat, venturing away – both up and down – from the monotony and pain of the ground level is the catalyst for his continued growth as a person. These documented moments in which his life, aspirations and artistic prowess collide are indicative of a slow, steady rise – one to which we will all be privy as we move past the future.

View the full article here.

View a gallery of Jules’ images here.

Rosewater 0001 // February 2024