Installation view of Adrien Missika's Darvaza, Turkmenistan, as part of The Edge of the Earth: Climate Change in Photography and Video, Ryerson Image Centre, 2016© Clifton Li, Ryerson Image Centre
The Edge of the Earth: Climate Change in Photography and Video at the Ryerson Image Centre
Aug. 30, 2016
The Ryerson Image Centre (RIC) joins one of the most urgent conversations of our time with The Edge of the Earth: Climate Change in Photography and Video. Increasingly and forebodingly, artists are turning their attention to the subject of climate change, in poignant and often confrontational ways. Opening September 14, 2016, this exhibition presents recent and historic work by a range of pioneering and visionary artists from around the world.
The exhibition features over 20 contemporary artists from Canada and abroad, including: Amy Balkin, Raymond Boisjoly, Edward Burtynsky, Peter Goin, Naoya Hatakeyama, Isabelle Hayeur, Mishka Henner, Chris Jordan, Richard Misrach, Evariste Richer, Joel Sternfeld and Sharon Stewart. Photographs from the RIC’s famed Black Star Collection will also be on view, providing historical context alongside these artistic reflections. This environmental photojournalism serves as a totem of a neglected prophecy, forewarning a slowly unfolding disaster.
The Edge of the Earth questions traditional views and challenges our environmental consciousness, proceeding from the conviction that we have entered the Anthropocene – the era marked by total human domination of the planet. Guest curated by Montreal-based art historian Dr. Benedicte Ramade, this in-depth exhibition fosters a reconsideration of climate change, envisioning the present crises and future consequences of humanity’s harsh imprint on the planet.
“We need to renew our approach to climate change,” says Dr. Ramade. “Since climate change is by nature disproportionate, it often overwhelms our understanding of scale and impact, becoming virtually impossible to visualize. Art is certainly one of the most powerful mediators for changing our vision.”
To accompany The Edge of the Earth, the RIC is pleased to partner with Black Dog Publishing to present a large-format book with critical texts by Dr. Benedicte Ramade and T. J. Demos. The public is encouraged to join the conversation online using the hashtag #RICearth.
Also in conjunction with the exhibition, the RIC has commissioned Toronto-based art collective Madeleine Co. to create Climate Talks, an 8-episode video series featuring discussions between children and adults about their hopes, fears and failings as they confront a future impacted by climate change. The trailer can be viewed at https://vimeo.com/176418365.
The exhibition is generously supported by Cineplex Media and Invesco, as well as by media sponsors Toronto Life and Toronto Star. Climate Talks is made possible with generous support from the City of Toronto through Toronto Arts Council and ArtReach Toronto.
Admission to the gallery is free.
Free exhibition tours daily at 2:30 pm.