White water and ice faces paint a unique picture under the northern lights, illustrating just how beautiful our planet is. But how important is it to protect the things we love? Photographers Chris Burkard and Paul Nicklen have joined forces to show the wonders of the world in the form of moving water molecules frozen in time, hoping to inspire ecological conservation and protection.
Vanishing Worlds: An Exploration of Fine Art and Environmental Conservation, opened July 15 at the Paul Nicklen gallery in Lower Manhattan. It focuses on disappearing rivers and floodplains in Iceland, including Arctic landscapes. With almost six million Instagram followers between them, the two photographers are hoping to start a global conversation on how to best admire and protect these threatened ecosystems.
Their collaboration is an example of how fine art can be used to enlighten people that don’t get to see the world’s natural beauty for themselves. It highlights the challenges posed by climate change and industrial development. The collection has a range of photos selling for anything for as low as $4,000 and as high as $18,000, with most of the proceeds going to the marine conservation group Sea Legacy, a non-profit that uses visual storytelling to break down scientific oceanic research.
