Photography Exhibition: Sebastião Salgado – Glaciers

The exhibition Glaciers, curated by Lélia Wanick Salgado and produced in collaboration with Contrasto, features 54 large-format photographs, accompanied by a video tribute and an extensive biographical section. The project offers a meaningful opportunity to explore the artist’s poetic vision while addressing one of the most urgent issues of our time, climate change, a theme to which the Bard fortress has long devoted scientific outreach initiatives.

Sebastião Salgado (1944–2025) was not only a photographer, but an tireless witness of contemporary history. With a humanist and activist gaze, he chronicled the social and economic transformations of the planet, turning his lens in this project toward the fragile beauty of glaciers. His images, taken in iconic locations such as Antarctica, Patagonia, the Himalayas, Canada, and Russia, convey a natural heritage of extraordinary visual power.

Alongside its artistic dimension, the exhibition invites reflection on the climate crisis: since the second half of the 20th century, scientific monitoring has recorded a steady reduction in glacial masses, with far-reaching environmental, cultural, and social consequences. Glaciers are essential to the Earth’s climate and hydrological cycle, providing vital water resources for billions of people. With this new visual tribute, Salgado once again urges us to become aware of the urgent need to protect the planet’s most vulnerable ecosystems.