Ali Nasseri | Boredom Doesn't Exist

Fun is not a product; it is a phenomenon born of stillness, of ideology, of imagination. In “Boredom Doesn’t Exist,” Ali Nasseri presents a lyrical documentary series captured in the North Island of Aotearoa New Zealand. Here, Māori youth inhabit a landscape shaped by sunlight, water, and kinship—elements that resist commodification yet define the essence of summer.

Shot exclusively on medium format Kodak film, each image is a carefully composed meditation on time and presence. The slow, deliberate process—just 10 exposures per roll—demands patience and precision, imbuing every frame with intention. In contrast to the infinite disposability of digital capture, Nasseri’s photographs feel rare, tangible, and enduring.

For over two decades, Ali Nasseri has worked exclusively with analogue film, building a practice rooted in honesty and reverence. He has exhibited widely, published monographs, and been recognised in contemporary photography prizes both in Australia and internationally. His work is held in the collections of several of Sydney’s most respected creative institutions.

Nasseri’s commitment to truth is absolute—he does not stage or manipulate scenes, allowing life to unfold in its purest form before his lens. Born in Iran and displaced at the age of seven, two years after the 1979 revolution, themes of liberty, belonging, and quiet resilience thread through his practice—not overtly, but through poetic inference. In this body of work, freedom takes the shape of play, of laughter, of water glittering in the sun: joy discovered in the fertile space between boredom and imagination.