In exploring the shared language and poetic sensibilities of all animals, I am working towards rediscovering the common ground that once existed when people saw themselves as part of nature and not outside of it. The destiny of whales cannot be separated from the destiny of man, and the destiny of man cannot be separated from the destiny of all of nature. I am exploring new narratives that help build a bridge across the artificial boundaries we have established between ourselves and other species.Gregory Colbert
Gregory Colbert's Ashes and Snow is an ongoing project comprised of photographic artworks, a one-hour film and two short film “haikus,” and a novel in letters all presented in a purpose-built temporary structure called the Nomadic Museum.
Colbert’s images, visceral yet dreamlike, return us to a place we long for but cannot name. His photographs and films reawaken an ancient memory in us of a time when we lived in balance with our animal kin. Since we first painted their silhouettes on the walls of caves 35,000 years ago, animals have inhabited our stories, our dreams, and our imaginations.
Since he began creating his singular work of Ashes and Snow in 1992, Colbert has undertaken filming and photographic expeditions to every continent to collaborate with more than one hundred species around the world. Colbert, who calls animals "nature's living masterpieces," photographs and films both wild animals and those that have been habituated to human contact in their native environments. There is no digital collaging.
The images record what he saw through the lens of his camera. While Colbert uses both still and movie cameras, the photographic images are not taken from the film.
Colbert’s images, visceral yet dreamlike, return us to a place we long for but cannot name. His photographs and films reawaken an ancient memory in us of a time when we lived in balance with our animal kin. Since we first painted their silhouettes on the walls of caves 35,000 years ago, animals have inhabited our stories, our dreams, and our imaginations.
Since he began creating his singular work of Ashes and Snow in 1992, Colbert has undertaken filming and photographic expeditions to every continent to collaborate with more than one hundred species around the world. Colbert, who calls animals "nature's living masterpieces," photographs and films both wild animals and those that have been habituated to human contact in their native environments. There is no digital collaging.
The images record what he saw through the lens of his camera. While Colbert uses both still and movie cameras, the photographic images are not taken from the film.
