It is fascinating to see an aerial view of Earth. One of the pioneers of aerial photography, Yann Arthus Bertrand, was in the city to show Mumbaikars one of his most acclaimed projects titled Earth From Above which is being displayed at the Marine drive stretch.
His aerial photographs in the bespoke series reflect the variety of natural habitats and expressions of life and man’s imprint and assault on his environment. This work constitutes a “state of the planet” at the beginning of a new millennium. His work underlines the fact that, more than ever, our present levels and modes of consumption, production and exploitation of resources are not viable in the long term.
Interestingly, Yann’s current project has him creating a ‘collage’ of humanity. Yann explains, “I am fascinated by the beauty of the Earth, but I am also fascinated by the beauty of people, and the beauty of their words. I started the project titled 6 Billions Others in 2003. We have taken more than 5,000 interviews around the world, asking the same questions on life, death, joy, childhood and others to all. It’s a portrait of humanity. The people we met shared their collective wisdom, their intelligence, their happiness, and their pains with us. After Paris last winter, the exhibition will be in Shanghai for the World Expo 2010. This summer, we went in 17 countries (including India) to interview people with a new set of questions about climate change. These testimonies formed the material for a new movie that was released at the Copenhagen Climate Conference.”
Showing a movie in Mumbai is as important as showing it in any other part of the world he believes. Yann says, “It is as important as showing it in New York or Paris as it concerns all of us and we live on the same planet and we must show solidarity.” Since 1967, this eco-conversationalist has won many accolades for his work. Ask him which of his works is a personal favourite and he replies, “It is a difficult question. I work on two or three projects at the same time. Maybe it’s because one project is never enough. I am an impatient man.” He adds, “Earth From Above is the longest of all the projects. I started it in 1992 and it seems to be a never ending project. But I would like to invite other photographers to continue and document how the planet is changing.”
