The Sacred Frequency of Gold — An Interview with Zack Zublena

For its Summer 2026 issue, Watkins Mind Body Spirit spoke with French-American artist Zack Zublena about the symbolic power of gold, his fine art photography in Los Angeles, and the relationship between art, consciousness and human transformation.

The conversation, published on page 28 of Issue 86 under the title The Sacred Frequency of Gold, explores why gold has remained such a powerful symbol across cultures, and how it became central to Zack's artistic practice.

Since November 2, 2026, the complete interview has also been available to read on the official Watkins Mind Body Spirit website, offering readers the opportunity to explore the conversation in its entirety.

Working with real people, reflective gold body paint, sculptural poses and carefully controlled lighting, Zack creates photographic artworks that explore the human form beyond its familiar appearance. His work draws on the Italian Renaissance, the language of classical sculpture and the transformative possibilities of contemporary photography.

The Sacred Frequency of Gold: A Conversation About Art and Consciousness

Gold has fascinated civilisations for thousands of years. Its relationship with sunlight, sacred imagery, royalty and ritual has made it far more than a precious material.

In his conversation with Watkins Mind Body Spirit, Zack considers this history alongside his own experience as an artist. For him, gold is not simply a colour or a symbol of material wealth. It is a way of exploring light, human presence and the ideas we associate with transformation.

The interview moves between historical traditions, personal experiences and Zack's philosophical interpretation of gold. Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Inca civilisation and Vedic symbolism all form part of the discussion.

There is also a physical dimension to gold's history. Gold was produced through extraordinary astrophysical processes long before our planet formed. For Zack, its cosmic origins add another layer to the symbolic language he explores through his work.

In his photographic practice, the transformation begins with the person in front of the camera. Reflective gold body paint changes the way light travels across the human form, creating images that often appear closer to sculpture than conventional portraiture.

Beyond the Surface: The Human Form as Fine Art

One of the central ideas discussed in the interview is the relationship between external appearance and inner identity.

Zack's photographs are created with real people, not computer-generated figures. Through body painting, lighting, movement and composition, familiar physical characteristics are transformed into an almost sculptural language.

Rather than placing the emphasis on conventional standards of beauty, this approach invites viewers to consider the human form as an expression of presence, individuality and emotional depth.

The influence of the Italian Renaissance can be seen in his attention to gesture, anatomical form, balance and the expressive possibilities of the body.

Art, Beauty and the Inner Self

During the interview, Zack reflects on the ability of beauty to communicate ideas that do not always translate easily into words.

His approach recalls a familiar idea associated with Michelangelo's sculptural philosophy: the artist seeks to reveal a form through the material rather than simply impose an appearance upon it.

In gold body paint photography, this relationship takes a different form. The artist works with a living subject, whose posture, gestures and physical presence become essential elements of the composition.

The reflective gold surface responds to even the smallest changes in light. A shoulder, a hand or the curve of the back can become the principal visual element, allowing the photograph to move between portraiture, abstraction and sculpture.

The resulting artworks are intended to stand independently of the circumstances in which they were created. The individual remains real, while the final composition offers a different way to contemplate the human figure.

Gold, Ancient Wisdom and the Language of Transformation

In the full interview, Watkins asks Zack how ancient civilisations understood gold differently from the way it is often perceived today.

The discussion touches on the solar symbolism of gold in ancient Egypt, its association with the sun in other cultures, and the golden imagery of Vedic traditions.

These references are important to Zack because his work draws upon both artistic history and personal spiritual interpretation. The photographs do not attempt to reconstruct ancient rituals. Instead, they reinterpret some of the visual and symbolic qualities that have made gold so compelling throughout history.

The conversation also explores Zack's personal experiences and his understanding of gold as a metaphor for inner awareness, transformation and freedom.

These spiritual interpretations belong to the philosophical perspective discussed in the interview; they are not presented as established scientific properties of gold.

From Individual Gesture to Artistic Composition

For Zack, the relationship between photographs is as important as the individual image.

In diptychs and triptychs, a sequence of gestures can suggest a progression through movement, stillness or transformation. Each photograph retains its identity, while the complete arrangement creates a broader visual conversation.

This approach is especially visible in his yoga-inspired compositions, where the body's relationship with balance, gravity and space becomes part of the artistic narrative.

Gold, Creativity and Spiritual Sovereignty

The discussion with Watkins Mind Body Spirit also considers the idea of spiritual sovereignty.

Zack approaches sovereignty as an inward quality: the freedom to think independently, to question inherited limitations and to recognise the possibility of shaping one's own experience.

For him, gold provides an artistic means of exploring these ideas. Its reflective quality makes the relationship between light and the human body immediately visible, while its cultural history introduces further questions about value, identity and meaning.

The full interview extends into ideas about personal spiritual experiences, consciousness, resonance and the symbolic relationship between gold and light.

This connection between art and consciousness is also examined in his book, The Sacred Frequency of Gold — Humanity's Blueprint for Awakening.

The Relationship Between Art and the Spaces We Inhabit

Although the interview centres on gold and personal transformation, these ideas also inform how Zack thinks about finished artworks.

A photograph can introduce stillness into a busy space, create a focal point or invite a moment of contemplation. The relationship between an artwork and its surroundings becomes especially important in residential interiors, galleries and wellness environments.

Through reflective gold, dark backgrounds and carefully controlled compositions, Zack's photographs maintain a distinctive visual presence while allowing each viewer to bring their own interpretation to the image.

His work has also been displayed in David Lloyd clubs across Europe, where the visual relationship between art, movement and wellbeing finds a particularly natural setting.

Human Connection Through Gold Fine Art Photography

Gold can also become a way of exploring the relationship between two people.

In Zack's couple compositions, the figures are photographed as individuals while their gestures and physical proximity create a shared visual language.

The result is not conventional couples photography. It is a fine art interpretation of intimacy, connection and the emotional relationship between two human beings.

Across his photographic practice, Zack continues to explore the human figure as an expressive subject, whether alone, in dialogue with another person or arranged as part of a larger composition.

The Full Interview on Watkins Mind Body Spirit

Originally published in the Summer 2026 edition of Watkins Mind Body Spirit, the interview begins on page 28 of Issue 86.

On November 2, 2026, Watkins also published the complete conversation on its website, making the full exchange available online.

The questions cover Zack's early experiences with gold, his approach to photographing the human body, ancient understandings of the material, his spiritual philosophy and the ideas explored in his book.

Rather than limiting the discussion to photographic technique, the interview offers a broader perspective on why gold has become such a central element of his creative work.

The printed issue places the conversation alongside articles exploring silence, wisdom, consciousness, creativity and the relationship between spiritual traditions and contemporary life.

For readers interested in the artistic and philosophical themes behind Zack's work, the complete interview provides a more personal perspective on the ideas explored through his photography.

Discover Zack Zublena's Gold Fine Art Photography

From individual portraits to sculptural diptychs, triptychs and larger compositions, Zack Zublena's photographic practice continues to examine the beauty, complexity and expressive potential of the human form.

His artworks are created through real photography, reflective gold body paint, careful direction and an individual artistic process rather than AI-generated imagery.

Explore his Gold Fine Art Photography Collection or discover the diptych, triptych and quadriptych collections.