Abstract
As the U.S. government continues to roll back environmental protections despite ever-increasing scientific evidence of the severity of the climate and extinction crises, Michelle Seelig’s Communicating the Environment Beyond Photography is very timely. Seelig, associate professor in the Department of Cinema and Interactive Media at the University of Miami, examines the use of photography to communicate environmental issues, starting with the advent of the medium and continuing to the present. The scope of the book is broad, addressing the rise of documentary photography in general, and then focusing on the importance of photography in the exploration of the west and the creation of national parks, in support of the New Deal, in critiquing of the perils of increasing industrialization at mid-century and beyond, and in lending strength to numerous activist efforts.
Almost half of the book addresses practices in the 21st century, discussing a wide range of current practices. Whereas the earlier part of the book focuses almost exclusively on the United States, the chapter, “Envisioning the Environment in the 21st Century,” includes examination of the work of fourteen photographers from around the world who advocate for wildlife conservation and an array of social and environmental issues. This is followed by an informative consideration of photographers employing rephotographic strategies, both rephotographing sites originally documented in the nineteenth century, and chronicling glaciers and other areas currently undergoing rapid change.
Harking back to the book’s title, the next chapter explores a range of activist platforms, from magazines to digital and social media. Much of the chapter is organized around a discussion of organizations of photographers, or environmental groups and independent media collaborating with photographers. While Seelig includes mention of innovative efforts to elicit citizen participation, such as Surfrider Foundation’s template to photograph arrangements of trash, or 350.org’s aerial photos of large groups holding blue flags to re-create a once flowing river, it is unclear how the chapter demonstrates, “when photos are not enough.”
Unfortunately, while the book presents useful lists of artists and organizations, these lists are not accompanied by insightful analysis. The first chapter defines environmental photography as broader than nature photography and lists a range of environmental issues, but other than the schism between the Sierra Club and Friends of the Earth in the 1960s, there is scant discussion of the nuances or evolution of environmental thought, a discussion necessary to understand the context within which environmental photography operates. Critical debates around the concept of wilderness or nature are ignored. Although photographers addressing “social issues,” such as infant mortality are included, there is no mention of the growing concern for environmental justice, which would locate these social issues as environmental concerns.
Even more troubling, how can a book exploring the impact of photography not look closely at images and introduce a vocabulary to do so? Aesthetics matter. Ansel Adams’ meticulous printing of dramatic black and white images with a full tonal range but high contrast enhances their impact. The choices of the following generation of new topographers, not only to include vestiges of human presence—from trash, roads to electrical wires—but also to present washed out skies and stark highlights, were intended to communicate a very different perspective. Terms like the beautiful, picturesque, and the sublime need to be used carefully and fully defined, respecting the extensive critical debates over the meaning of these concepts.
The author does include a welcome chapter on environmental news coverage. However, the analysis of how photography contributes to this coverage is disappointingly thin. How specifically is imagery employed in the service of balanced coverage or by doubt-mongers? Vague terms like “banal imagery,” or “detached and benign visuals,” are not enough either to visualize what is being critiqued or to imagine an alternative. Throughout the book, the subject matter of a photographer’s work is briefly described. Rarely is there substantial examination of the specific appearance or content of the imagery to support claims of the efficacy of particular photographic strategies.
Perhaps the most informative detail is provided in the analysis of images used by Greenpeace. Although we never see what is referred to as “fear evoking” photographs, Seelig discusses two examples from more recent campaigns that combine image and text to evoke humor and represent what she deems as a “softened tone.” A more thorough discussion not only of single photographs, but of the ways images are grouped in series, or text and image juxtaposed, whether in news media, books, or digital media, would be welcome.
From the opening pages, Seelig argues for the power of the photograph. While she states that her book is not “picture-driven,” it is ill conceived to write a book about the power of imagery without specifically analyzing how these images communicate. The use of photography in environmental art is touched upon only in a cursory manner, although many of the photographers discussed displayed their work in artistic contexts. It is certainly legitimate to focus on photographs used in mass media; however, Seelig’s analysis would greatly benefit from incorporating some of the methodology developed by art and cultural historians to analyze photographs. In the concluding pages, Seelig describes the strategies of photographers addressing ecological issues in extremely limited terms, as grabbing “the viewer’s attention with an unfiltered look at the evils society has inflicted on people, places, and spaces.” A more thoughtful analysis of the work of the photographers mentioned could yield a more robust understanding of the work that photographic images can do to encourage the citizen activism and engagement.