Exhibition - Nick Brandt: Environmental Photographer
Thursday, May 23, 2024 from 11:00am to 07:00pm
Lehigh Valley Arts Council
Lehigh University Art Galleries
420 East Packer Avenue,
Selections from the series Inherit the Dust and This Empty World
This exhibition presents works from two of Nick Brandt’s series, Inherit the Dust and This Empty World. Through his photographs, Brandt creates a vision of environmental devastation, with both human and animal victims suffering in the aftermath of progress. Brandt envisions a world overwhelmed by development, where there is no longer space for animals to survive.
In Inherit the Dust, Brandt records the impact of humans in places where animals used to roam. In each location— now a site of urban development, factories, wasteland and quarries—he erects and re-photographs a panel showing one of his life-size animal portrait photographs.
In This Empty World, Brandt combines two moments in time, often captured weeks or months apart from the same locked-off camera position. After building and lighting an initial set, Brandt waits for the animals that previously inhabited the region to slowly become comfortable enough to enter the frame. Once the animals are captured on camera, full sets—bridge and highway construction sites, a petrol station, a bus station and more—are built. A second sequence is then photographed with the full set and a large cast of people drawn from local communities and beyond.
This exhibition has been made possible through the generosity of Meg and Bennett Goodman.
Exhibition Dates: January 23, 2024 - May 24, 2024