Michael Massaia's photographs are as nostalgic as they are disturbing. His long-exposure images capture a subject matter familiar to most. From a SpongeBob SquarePants popsicle to a Neapolitan ice cream sandwich, he frames the frozen treats most people's summer memories are made of. Yet, Massaia doesn't just realistically render his ice cream. He distorts the childhood favorites by melting them before his lens, until the pops resemble ominous pools of paint or celestial snapshots.

American actress and model Karruche Tran arrives at Highlight Room for a Halloween party in Hollywood, CA. on October 29, 2019, dressed as Nancy Callahan from “Sin City”. (Photo by Backgrid USA)

The classical ballet company “Ardentia” performs in the street of Mexico City on traffic lights, in an effort to highlight the city's fine arts in public spaces in Mexico, September 8, 2018. (Photo by Carlos Jasso/Reuters)

Artist Kong Ning wears a wedding dress made from respirators to highlight concerns about air quality and pollution in Beijing, China on December 1, 2015. (Photo by Luo Xiaoguang/Xinhua Press/Corbis)

Bristol celebrates “wonderful diversity” at St Paul's carnival on Saturday, July 6, 2019. Thousands filled the streets for the city’s 51st procession highlighting the contribution of the Windrush generation. (Photo by Alex Turner/The Guardian)

“Memoirs of a Geisha” – For its May 2013 cover story, Elle Vietnam gets inspired by the Japanese-influence of spring collections and Geisha beauty. Model Tian Yi evokes the theme perfectly in a series of images which juxtapose an urban backdrop with the ornate prints and sleek silhouettes of Prada, Dries van Noten, Dior, Thakoon and more selected by stylist Anna Katsanis. Photographer Oliver Stalmans captures the Chinese beauty in this elegant shoot. (Photo by Oliver Stalmans)

White whales and their trainers present a show for visitors at Harbin Pole Aquarium on January 7, 2014 in Harbin, China. Aquarium is one of the tourist highlights of Harbin, attract domestic and foreign tourists visit each year. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

Chisanga Mwila dressed as Ariel from The Little Mermaid on Cullercoats beach, Newcastle on Tuesday, May 9, 2023 ahead of the 2023 live-action remake of the film as part of an awareness campaign from sustainable toilet paper company Oceans highlighting the negative impact of marine pollution on the British coastline. (Photo by Owen Humphreys/PA Wire)