The exhibit of Sebastio Salgado: Genesis, in the International Center for Photography, was a very interesting exhibit. There were over 100 photographs and two floors filled with photographs. The exhibit was broken up into different categories. The Categories were the Northern Space, Amazonia and Pantanal Sanctuaries, Africa, and Planet South There were many types of photos. The photos are based on landscape, portraits and wildlife. The photos were also in black and white. The photographer, Sebastio Salgado was born on February 8, 1944 in Aimorés, which is in Brazil. He is 70 years old. He earned a masters degree in economics but then switched to photography. The exhibit is called “Genesis” because the photographs face nature, humanity and climate change.
The subject matter of the exhibit is of nature itself and within nature such as animals, humans and its culture. In the photographs there were tons of photos of landscapes of different parts of the world. The photos of nature showed of glaciers, trees, leaves, lakes, and snowstorms. The whole landscape of the country/region. It showed people and how their culture is. There were people, who looked like Eskimos. People in furry coats, and people on their sleds. In other parts there were women who would wear huge lip plates. People building their own houses and hunting for food. Most of the people were nude, and it shows that they live fine without the modern technology. There were also animals such as Musk ox, walrus, penguins, sea lions, lions, zebras, giraffes, leopard, elephants, iguanas, birds and whales. What we don’t see in the exhibit is modernization.
One of the photographs that I liked is the “A Leopard in Barab River Valley” in this photograph; the leopard is the important subject. The photo is at an eye level. The photograph also has negative space. Since the entire background is pure dark. The photograph looks like it has the exposure compensation, considering that the entire background is super dark. The leopard is bright including the thin layer of rocks surrounding the leopard. It is in great high contrast. There is also a curved line. Which the layer of rocks is curved.
The exhibit is about “Genesis”, which means the beginning. Saving the earth, such as saving the water, soil and air. To protect the lands, people and animals and reverse the damage that humanity has caused. The exhibit is about the beauty of earth/nature.It shows the diversity of human communities that continue to live in harmony with their ancestral traditions and cultures, which shows a path to humanity’s rediscovery of itself in nature. Which can be an emotional impact as well.
