Ice
she stood there within her castle of many battlements gazing down upon us……
this silver goddess of the sea…….

I relish the art of seeing, of being cognizant of the world around me and finding an alchemy between my subject and the moment. My subject matter is nature, whether it’s a traditional landscape or man’s encroaching impact and how climate-related vulnerabilities illuminate existing social and political inequalities. My Polar photographic work illuminates these and moves us in ways that statistics cannot. The beauty and increasing vulnerabilities of these landscapes, seascapes, wildlife and communities that live within them identifies the terrible toll and devastating impact mankind has, and continues to have. And yet, perhaps the engine of capitalism is too powerful, as the concept of people sacrificing for the future while embroiled in a daily struggle for life seems absurd to some.

The American novelist Ernest Hemingway is famous for his writing style of short sentences. Hemingway, in fact, compared his writing style to icebergs. Just like an iceberg remains largely unseen beneath the surface, a writer can leave parts of a story unwritten. Hemingway believed the reader would understand and be affected by the unwritten parts of a story as well as parts that were actually written.

These sculptures are not static or immune from the elements, for they will collapse, melt and be washed away. Always in strikingly different forms, aground or silently floating, nature waiting to release her pent-up energy!

Such ephemeral beauties, and for our pleasure their music played…creaking, cracking and groaning, we had them all to ourselves in such magnificent light!

A white ceramic glaze, the sea boomed with stillness, night light glaring off its ice.

The remote, snowy regions I photograph are undergoing rapid reshaping and are the “visual barometers” of climate change. These remote regions are inaccessible to most people and I feel privileged to have experienced them. When I look through the viewfinder of my camera I try to convey the beauty of these vulnerable landscapes and communities, as opposed to their devastation in the hope viewers will help protect and preserve them.

What is at stake? The true essence – the spiritual essence, if you will – of nature’s importance that has been sidelined by politicians and business people. My work is a reconnection to the past and the immense issues facing our planet.

90% of the iceberg is hidden below the surface,

belying the visible symmetry reflected on the water.

The photos are taken in Greenland, Antarctica and Svalbard.

MARTYN LUCAS

http://facebook.com/Martyn.lucas.12

I grew up in England where my father, an amateur photographer, introduced me to the magic of the black and white dark room, how to compose and maximize the contrast of light and dark, and capture the evocative landscape scene. My influences are first and foremost everything I see, feel and experience.

My recently published work and exhibitions both in the USA and Europe, focus on the environment and what is profoundly at stake.

As a photographic guide for one of the leading companies specializing in Polar Adventures, I am thrilled to share my enthusiasm and photographic skills with many professional and amateur photographers from whom I have also learned a great deal.