Jamey Stillings: Changing Perspectives: Renewable Energy and Infrastructure
September 19 - 25, 2017
Pingyao International Photography Festival, Pingyao, Peoples Republic of China
participatings artists: Jamey Stillings
Jamey Stillings' career spans documentary, fine art and commercial photography projects. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Willamette University and a Master of Fine Arts in Photography from Rochester Institute of Technology. Stillings' work is in the collections of the United States Library of Congress; the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; and the Nevada Museum of Art. Recent milestones include: International Photographer of the Year 2016, First Place, Editorial, Environmental; International Photography Awards 2016, Professional: Book Photographer of the Year; Mt. Rokko International Photo Festival 2016, solo exhibition, "The Evolution of Ivanpah Solar," Japan. Stillings' book, The Evolution of Ivanpah Solar, was published by Steidl in 2015. His previous book, The Bridge at Hoover Dam, was published by Nazraeli Press in 2011.
"CHANGING PERSPECTIVES: Renewable Energy and Infrastructure
We are at a critical point in the evolution of our species. How we choose to live on Earth during the next century, with our rapidly growing human population and expanding consumption patterns, may determine not only human prospects for survival, but also the ultimate viability of Earth’s ecosystem.
I have long been intrigued by the visual tension created at the nexus of nature and human activity. Uniquely as a species, we modify and use the environment for our perceived needs or enjoyment. Sometimes, we consider the future consequences of our actions. But often, we focus myopically on the short-term utility of land and resource use. As a photographer, I use aerial and ground based photography to explore these intersections.
CHANGING PERSPECTIVES is a connected set of photography projects I am working on over a period of several years. Beginning with two earlier projects, The Bridge at Hoover Dam (2009-2010) and The Evolution of Ivanpah Solar (2010-2014), my work now primarily focuses on renewable energy development. Photography in this exhibition features work created in the USA, Japan, and Uruguay.
My goal is to build CHANGING PERSPECTIVES into a project of global scale. Renewable energy development around the world reflects a growing commitment to transform our national and international economies away from a dependence on fossil fuels towards a future that taps the extraordinary sustainable energy of the sun, wind, and tides. I am working to document a select group of international renewable energy projects – ones that reflect a proactive commitment to future generations, while revealing the challenges and compromises such transformations often entail. China is at the forefront of this effort. I hope to document important projects in your country in the near future."
Thank you to the Pingyao Festival for inviting me to curate this show and thank you to Jamey Stillings for this wonderful collaboration in China.
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