Tag: Climate Change

Photography as Activism:  Polar Obsession

Photography as Activism: Polar Obsession

Last week I wrote about the Climate Change exhibit at the Cleveland Museum of Art and about how the exhibit relied on text and information in an attempt to gain attention to global warming, which can be ineffective of informing and engaging visitors. There is another exhibit on display of photography at CMNH that is a good example of how imagery and art can spark interest in viewers about the issue of global warming.

The exhibit Polar Obsession features the work of photographer Paul Nicklen, who uses his camera to capture unique images of animals who live in the polar regions, whose livelihood is threatened due to the polar melting away caused by human-induced global warming.  The show features over 60 images that are unique images of polar animals in their natural settings.

Nicklen calls himself an interpreter or translator and says that through photography he can translate what he hears from scientists. “If we lose ice, we stand to lose an entire ecosystem,” Nicklen says.  “I hope we can realize through my photography how interconnected these species are to ice.”

Instead of using telephoto lenses, Nicklen  likes to get close to his subjects, which gives his images a unique presence.   Nicklen writes that, “Two colleagues at National Geographic have nicknamed me the Underwater Street Photographer, because it’s the street photographer who gets as close as possible to each subject, sometimes bringing the camera lens to within centimeters of the subjects.  Many wildlife photographers mainly use a long telephoto lens to shoot full frame images.  If I am using my 600mm lens, I don’t feel close enough.  If I am diving under the ice face to face with a walrus, filling the frame with my fisheye lens in a potentially dangerous situation, where no one has been before – then I know I am getting something good.”

Nicklen’s images have a unique quality than other nature photographs.  The photographs often depict animals from  different angles,  rare interactions of animals, and in a sharpness in the photo quality rarely seen in wildlife photography.

Recently there has been an increase in articles and posts about nature photographers who photograph endangered species as  activists.  Nicklen’s work aims to generate global awareness about wildlife and environmental issues, and is an example of how images can get others to become aware and appreciate polar species.

“I realize that if I really want people to care about polar species such as the polar bear, leopard seal, walrus and narwhal, my images have to be wild and raw.  I want people to feel what it’s like to be in the water, swimming a meter from a polar bear,” Nicklen says.  “I want them to experience what it’s like to be offered a penguin as food by a leopard seal.  Only then will they care about that habitat and that species.”

To do this work, he has gone on expeditions that include tracking Stellar sea lions in the Aleutian Islands, diving with narwhals off of Northern Baffin Island, swimming with leopard seals in Antarctica, photographing walruses on sea ice in Nunavut, and living on the open tundra with bears and wolves for a three-month solo trek. .

In one of his talks he mentions the power of the animals themselves to bring attention to a larger issue.  Nicklen says, “If you tell people ‘We are going to lose ice,’ no one is interested  because we hear it all the time.   If you tell people,  ‘We are going to lose polar bears,’  you get peoples’ attention.”

The exhibition supports his book, Polar Obsessions, which was published by National Geographic in November 2009.

Most visitors at the museum that I saw stopped to view the images, and many watched the TEDtalk of Nicklen that is playing as part of the exhibit.  Even if you have seen lots of imagery of bears and seals – this  show will capture your attention and provide a way to see polar animals and their habitat in a new way.

Polar Obsession is on display at CMNH until January 22, 2012.

Images:

Paul Nicklen

 

Links:

Paul Nicklen’s Website

Paul Nicklen’s TED talk video

Polar Obsession Exhibit :  at CMNH page

Extreme Exposure: Paul Nicklen Talk (Feb. 24, 20111)

 

Gaming for Good: Game Concepts wanted to support Climate Reality

Gaming for Good: Game Concepts wanted to support Climate Reality

Got a good game idea about climate change?  Creative agencies (advertising, design, digital and otherwise) and brand teams are invited to contribute ideas based on a brief around the needs of organizations like The Climate Reality Project .

PSFK (the website which calls itself a source for new ideas) and the Climate Reality Project are  collaborating to create and share concepts that support revealing the complete truth about the climate crisis.

The concepts that best meet the brief will be published on the pages of PSFK.com, included in a downloadable PSFK x Climate Reality Project report, given a PR push to relevant national and international publications, and presented at events including PSFK’s New York launch in December.

The Climate Reality Project is an initiative that aims to bring the facts about the climate crisis into the mainstream and engaging the public in conversation about how to solve it. We help citizens around the world discover the truth and take meaningful steps to bring about change.

Founded and chaired by Al Gore, The Climate Reality Project has more than 5 million members and supporters and is guided by one simple truth: The climate crisis is real and we know how to solve it.

Currently on the Climate Reality Project website you can see highlights from the 24 hours of reality project, an event where 24 presenters were broadcast in 24 Time Zones talking about climate change.  The presentations were by citizen activists and Al Gore, who presented extreme weather events around the world and talked about the issue of pollution changing the climate.

PSFK will be presenting the brief in person on the evening of November 7th at their offices in NYC. They also will also be distributing a digital copy of the brief to those that cannot attend. Responses must be received by November 16 and after vetting by the PSFK staff, Al Gore’s team at The Climate Reality Project will judge the best concepts. These will be announced on December 2nd at a special event.

You can sign up here to attend the briefing or get the digital version of the brief emailed to you : http://www.psfk.com/gaming-for-good#ixzz1cXaj74lf

Links:

Climate Reality Project Website

Climate Change 101 Video by the Climate Change Reality Project

Gaming for Good – PSFK Brief sign up

PSFK.com

Image Source: Picture of Game from the Climate Change Exhibit at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History

 

 

 

A Little Cool… The Climate Change Exhibit at CMNH

A Little Cool… The Climate Change Exhibit at CMNH

This weekend I went to the Climate Change exhibit at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

The exhibit has some interactive exhibits, and lots of printed text information which talks about the changing atmosphere, ice, ocean, and land. – and promotes the idea that climate change is the defining issue of the 21st century.

The exhibit is organized in a roundabout matter – there was not a clear entry or access point – and I observed other visitors entering and exiting from various points of the exhibit.   There are some things that are interesting to see –  including a large saltwater tank with coral, a stuffed polar bear who appears to be walking on a giant pile of garbage, and lots of exhibits with buttons to push.

Though I found some of displays interesting, I found the use of text to be overwhelming – it was like walking through a book.  I also found the layout of the show to be confusing.  I ended up wandering around cruising the exhibits – “power skimming” the text and content.  I saw lots of kids climbing on the large windmill wing that was on display, and admiring the large buoy at the front of the show while their parents looked on – but I did not hear many people talking about the content.

The show had a 10 minute movie which featured charts, text, and information – and was inline with the information heavy quality of the show.

One engaging interactive piece of the show is a interactive large ipod-like table – where you can interact with a large touchscreen – and pick topics that you would like to learn more information about – and put in your email to get the information sent to you.  This piece was added to the show by CMNH.  This was a place that I saw many visitors go to and interact with.

The show overall made me think about the power of art  – and how art can engage an audience and  communicate a message  – and not depend on text as its sole point of engagement.

One of the highlights of the show was a exhibit on a curved wall that used small color strips to show temperature change over time. It had a abstract quality to it – and the wall showed strips that were different values of red and blue – The piece was visually interesting and in a quiet, simple way – showed the climate temperature change through color.  The strong visual impact of the piece drew me in to learn more – and I read the information, reviewed the charts and maps, and probably learned the most from this exhibit which was at the back of the show.

When I talked to museum staff about the reaction to the show, they said that many visitors avoid the show  – perhaps to avoid the topic, or due to disinterest.

Overall, the show demonstrated the challenge of trying to introduce the controversial topic of climate change and do it in a engaging and informative matter.

Seeing this show for me was a reminder of the power of art to engage and inform an audience – and the potential of metaphor, abstraction, and aesthetics as a tool to get visitors interested in a topic.

Links:

See images and read about the Exhibit at the CMNH website

Online aricle about the exhibit with video clips on Cleveland.com