Eagle Creek Fire

Kristi McCluer, American

Eagle Creek Fire, 2017

McCluer, a novice photographer, was hiking to find a good view of the Eagle Creek Fire when she stumbled on this scene. Her photograph quickly went viral, perhaps, because she perfectly captured environmental justice and climate denial. Golf, a symbol of wealth and environmental carelessness, appears to be the only concern for the white men in the foreground. Behind them, a fiery hellscape lights up the mountain as smoke fills the sky. Wealthy individuals can afford to be unperturbed by such crises, continue their game of golf, withstand and even deny environmental disaster. However, through an invisible contrast, the photograph forces the observer to think about those who cannot afford this kind of leisure when facing environmental harm. Label by Katie Lee

Typewriter

Norma I. Quintana, American

Typewriter, 2017

This image depicts a remnant of artist Norma I. Quintana’s burned typewriter in the aftermath of the wildfire that destroyed her Napa home. The deadly fires, making idyllic wine country into hell on earth, left dozens of artists throughout the region without their studios, materials, or archives. As a consequence, many artists were forced to adopt new processes and mediums; in digging for her memories, Quintana had to shoot digitally and in color for the first time. The content itself of the photo is a counterpart to this forced adjustment to a newer and more accessible technology—if not of less dimension; the antiquated typewriter bears no hope of itself producing ever again. Quintana’s response is one of many adaptations of medium as well as repurposings of destroyed property and the ashes as evidence of disaster. Label by Hannah London

Amazon Deforestation

Victor Moriyama, Brazil

Amazon Deforestation, 2019

Victor Moriyama, a Brazilian photojournalist, focuses his work on South America and the Amazon rainforest. Moriyama documents social and environmental violence in regards to agrarian conflicts, deforestation and conservation of rainforests, genocide of indigenous individuals, and climate change. This photograph is part of Moriyama’s “Amazon Deforestation” project, which highlights how the Amazon rainforest is faring under the control of Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro. Fire in the Amazon rainforest is primarily caused by humans as a result of ranching and logging, which can be defined as ecocide. This image is an aerial photograph, displaying how the scorched forest encroaches on the lush jungle landscape. The Amazon rainforest has an important role in regulating climate change and is home to diverse wildlife as well as thousands of indigenous people, which are all being disregarded and destroyed by fire for profit. Label by Elsa Rall

Sarah Meenahan of Rainbow Camp

Peter Bohler, Swiss-American

Sarah Meenahan of Rainbow Camp, 2017

This photo is part of a series for the New York Times titled “Inmate Wildfire Fighters” in which Bohler showcases the female inmates tackling California’s wildfires. Inmate firefighters elect to do this work, and get to live in a much nicer facility, but are still only paid $2 to $5 an hour to put their health and frequently their life on the line, with as little as three weeks of training (compared to the three years that civilian firefighters receive). Plus, it is nearly impossible for released inmates to then get a related job since LA County fire does not hire felons. Bohler’s photo series highlights a sort of power and even majesty that these women hold, while additionally raising some interesting questions; for instance, director of the A.C.L.U. National Prison Project David Fathi, speaking to Times journalist Jamie Lowe posits, “if these people are safe to be out and about carrying axes and chainsaws, maybe they didn’t need to be in prison in the first place.” Inmates, who make up a significant portion of California’s firefighting force, are paying both financially and with their health for the effects of climate change in California. Label by Laura Reitze