The Silence of Iceland: A Study of Landscape and Spirit in Siarhei Yazlavetski’s Portrayal of the Country

BY LUSYA YANGIROVA

Siarhei Yazlavetski’s photographic series, Silence of Iceland, captures the essence of Iceland with a poetic and succinct vision. Yazlavetski offers a glimpse of a landscape that appears real and mythical, grounded yet steeped in memory. His images evoke the feeling of standing amidst the spume of the ocean, where moss clings to ancient rocks, and the thyme-scented air drifts across vast, quiet beaches. These photographs convey Iceland’s solitude and strength, shaped by glaciers, volcanic rocks, and the constant presence of the ocean.

Each image reflects Iceland’s unique spirit—a place where landscapes hold the memory of trolls and legends, where whale bones might be found washed up beside weathered seashells, and where sheep graze quietly beneath the ever-present wind.

Yazlavetski’s careful attention to the atmosphere of the frame brings to life not only the monumental aspects of Iceland, like waterfalls and geysers, but also the subtle, everyday elements that define it: the smell of tobacco smoke in a remote village, the distant outline of a church, or a lone horse silhouetted against the horizon.

In these images, we find echoes of Icelandic life—dogs running along empty beaches, seashells scattered on black sands, and the quiet spaces between villages connected by ferries that cross fjords. Yazlavetski’s work captures the interplay between Iceland’s natural and cultural landscapes, suggesting the presence of scooters navigating small towns, or the taste of liquorice and tea enjoyed in the cool, sharp air.

The work has an austere beauty, using black-and-white tones that lend the series a timeless, meditative quality. Yazlavetski captures the rough textures of rocks and lava, the rippling surface of glacial lakes, and the imposing cliffs and waterfalls with a restrained palette that allows viewers to focus on form and texture.

His minimalist approach recalls the work of photographers like Michael Kenna, whose monochromatic landscapes evoke atmosphere and solitude, yet Yazlavetski brings an additional layer—a narrative of Iceland’s unique character, woven from images that feel like memories captured somewhere out of time.

Yazlavetski’s series evokes the sounds and sensations of Iceland: the murmur of a waterfall, the taste of salt in the air, the faint scent of sulphur near geothermal pools. His work hints at the quiet life within these landscapes—the barbecue fires by the ocean, the simple warmth of sweaters against the wind, and the sight of lupine flowers growing wild.

He captures the Icelandic spirit not only through its iconic vistas but through the small, intimate moments: a rainbow glimpsed through the mist, the feel of clover underfoot, or a museum in a tiny village filled with relics of local life.

Silence of Iceland allows us to experience the country not as a distant spectacle but as a place deeply rooted in nature and culture. Yazlavetski’s images reveal Iceland as a landscape of raw beauty and quiet resilience, a land where the organ’s echo in a remote church can be as moving as the sight of a glacier. His work is a meditation on solitude and reflection, where viewers can lose themselves in the textures of stone, water, and wind, allowing them to connect with Iceland’s vast, silent landscapes and perhaps their own inner stillness.

BY LUSYA YANGIROVA

Login