The Light Collective is a group of five Australian-based landscape photographers whose objective is “to explore modern interpretations of Australia’s immense and unique landscapes to invite deeper reflection on the immeasurable value of our wild places.”
In their latest book, Black and Blue: Coal or Coral, these photographers use their collective voice to ask if we are prepared to lose what may be the greatest natural wonder – the Great Barrier Reef – to the greed of industry, the self-interests of politicians and our rapacious consumerism?
This is a question others are asking too, such as renowned naturalist and broadcaster Sir David Attenborough who describes the Great Barrier Reef as “among the planet’s richest, most complex and most beautiful ecosystems. Do we really care so little about the earth on which we live that we don’t want to protect one of the world’s greatest wonders from the consequences of our behaviour?”
In Black and Blue: Coal or Coral the incredible beauty of the reef is juxtaposed against photographs of a landscape ravaged by mining. The book provides compelling documentary evidence of what is at stake at a time when the Australian government is supporting one of the largest coal mining ventures in the country’s history. Despite the irrefutable evidence that the global warming is literally killing the Reef, mining continues unabated, and perilously close to the Reef.
In the Age of the Image, to borrow from Professor Fred Ritchin, the idea that ‘seeing is believing’ is a powerful proposition. More than that, ‘seeing is believing’ is built into our DNA. The photographs of Adam Williams, Luke Austin, Ignacio Palacios, Ricardo De Cunha and Paul Hoelen come at a critical moment. Perhaps photography is the final hope in this fight for the Reef and more broadly, for the survival of the planet.
In the book Hoelen writes, “the immense degradation of the reef presents us with one of the most tangible and undeniable illustrations of the kind of impacts global warming holds for us, an unmistakable warning shot over the bow.”
We’ve heard the shot. We can now see what will be lost. The only question left to ask is: what will we do about it?
Alison Stieven-Taylor
Black and Blue: Coal or Coral
The Light Collective
https://www.thelightcollective.com.au
