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Saviors of the Nomadic Spirit
Osama Esber is a Syrian poet, short story writer, photographer and translator who presently lives in California. He is an editor in Salon Syria, Jadaliyya’s Arabic section, and an editor in Status audio magazine. Among his poetry collections are: Screens of History (1994); The Accord of Waves (1995); Repeated Sunrise over Exile (2004); and Where He Doesn’t Live (2006). His short story collections are entitled The Autobiography of Diamonds (1996); Coffee of the Dead (2000); and Rhythms of a Different Time (in process). He has translated into Arabic works by Alan Lightman, Richard Ford, Elizabeth Gilbert, Raymond Carver, Michael Ondaatje, Bertrand Russell, Toni Morrison, Nadine Gordimer, and Noam Chomsky, to name a few. He attended the international writing program in Iowa in 1995.
By Osama Esber
Writing as a creative art, in its essence, is an act of immigration. This is because a creative artist always searches for a new way to express his or her vision in a new form. This act of searching means that the poet migrates from the familiar to the unfamiliar, from tradition to the horizon that his individual talent expands The process of creative artistic experience is defined by this act of migrating.
The manifestos of great literary movements have always endorsed the desertion of outmoded, traditional, and inherited forms, and the pursuit of novel, innovative means of expression. Nevertheless, new creative forms were always received with suspicion; they were censored or burned, rejected or confiscated in a similar manner to how refugees or immigrants were stuck at borders, isolated in ghettoes, looked down upon, or discriminated against.
The great modern cities and civilizations were built by immigrants or by invaders who became settlers after massacring or marginalizing natives. Nonetheless, this act of invasion, of colonization, is not the topic at hand. What I want to emphasize is that the act of immigration inhabits our entire human endeavor and has defined it since the beginning of creation. Even in religion, the first man migrated (as a result of exile) from the heavens, wearing the mask of the fall, or the first sin.
We have been immigrants since our ancient African ancestors decided to find a haven in which humankind could continue to prosper. Modern anthropology, according to Bill Bryson in his book A Short History of Nearly Everything (Broadway Books 2003) was built around the idea that humans emerged from Africa in two waves. Scientists argued that people have long been migrating and sharing genes as well as information. But humans, who are immigrants in the existential sense, have become citizenry with privilege and power, and have given up their previous role as the saviors of migration as a creative option to enrich and prolong human endeavor. To satisfy their egos, they built refugee camps, regarded immigrants as numbers, taxpayers, or voters and created programs for refugees and asylees, funded fences and walls, created humanitarian relief agencies, and became donors or symbols of charity. Power is highly skillful and cunning in crafting and donning masks.
For the current power structures that dominate the world, Africa, the continent from which the first immigrants left, was only a source of slaves and refugees, epidemics and mines; Arab countries are markets and oil wells; Latin American countries are the spring of cheap labor and the dump for industrial waste. Inhabitants of other countries and the children of other cultures were not allowed to taste the bread of modernity, but sometimes were allowed to eat the crumbs that fell from the tables of their supposed masters.
People feed on oblivion and develop a short memory, a memory that betrays history and experience. People forget that they have been immigrants since the first humans migrated to a new place. We live in an age of disconnection and isolation. Politics, as practiced in the world, continue to pave the way for disaster. The gap between misery and privilege expands, technology still under the control of Cain, the slayer of his brother. The story originated and continues from a crime that has disguised itself as progress. Brothers have forgotten that they are related, blinded by greed and the desire to dominate nature.
The human nest, the only haven for us, we the migratory birds of creation, has been disturbed. New developed powers of evil and darkness have been released. The main concern, as usual, has been what should be done to make businesses thrive and large companies continue to operate. We should give money to people so that they can make purchases. The market should not stop. Consumers should remain activated. Concern for the market’s continuous immunity has required taking care of human subjects.
In the Arab world, where the future is as murky as London’s fog, governments behave as if there is no epidemic. Money is not for taking care of people; money is for buying from the West more gears to control people, or for depositing in private Swiss banks.
In the beginning, regimes were relieved by the pandemic. The dark forces of nature were in the service of despotism and autocracy; no one dared to assemble or to go out onto the streets. But as despair continued to reign, and corruption soared to new heights, people challenged the pandemic as well tyranny, and went out to protest because their livelihoods had been stolen and they were deprived of a life with dignity and respect in the miserable cities of the Middle East. These are cities without hope, where one can “show you fear in a handful of dust,” as T.S. Eliot stated in The Waste Land, or in any face. This is not only the fear of losing your job that Eduardo Galeano discussed in his book Upside Down: A Primer For the Looking-Glass World (Metropolitan Books 1998), but also a fear of losing your meaning and purpose, of reaching a point where you find yourself chanting T.S. Eliot’s lines in The Hollow Men, “We are the hollow men/the stuffed men.”
Living in the West is no longer as it was. It may not be as promising as before. It is no longer a rosy dream, contrary to what lines of people at the gates of foreign embassies in the Middle East or at border crossings, or anywhere, think.
Once upon a time, and a good time it was, Arab writers used to visit Western capitals and return to talk about the wonders of modernity, philosophical theories, and great literary and intellectual movements, but now Arab writers come to stay, not to return and tell their stories like the great travelers of old times. They run away from tyranny and bring with them their countries in a metaphoric form, recreate them in language or in dreams, and live in an imagined geography, while in the real geography of isolation they face a double estrangement: They become separate from their roots and victims to a culture of fear, expressed by the established citizenry, who have forgotten their roots, their essence as immigrants who built civilization.
When drought afflicted Syria it led, along with much else, to a tide of uprisings, where the poor and downtrodden went out onto the streets demanding bread, water, and freedom. Now, those who did not die there under bombardment have become immigrants, refugees in neighboring countries where racism bares its teeth. Many of them live forgotten in tents at the borders, while scores of others are under the threat of deportation, which makes evident the narrow limits of human solidarity.
In the light of all this, writers, poets, and artists, the saviors of the nomadic spirit of the human race, should always be ready to forge again- borrowing from James Joyce- in the smithy of their souls the uncreated conscience of their races. They should enlighten their people to the fact that there is only one race on this planet, whose short experience, or journey in a caravan of various magical colors, may come to an end, whose migratory spirit may extinguish and may not find another place to reemerge. It is time to dismantle the barbed wires of our hearts. Climate change and its implicit and explicit dangers should make us think of immigration in a creative way. But the big question is: When our poor planet becomes unable to sustain life, will there be any future anthropologists to discuss another migration?
Cities That Visited Me*
-1-
I saw dolls on your streets
becoming women
and despair stumbling along
like the feet of Syrian workers.
-2-
Sometimes your banks
inject the day’s veins with hope.
Sometimes your dawn
breathes in the smoke of words.
-3-
Your TV channels told us
of other doors,
but when opened,
they only led to another room
in the same house.
– 4-
I saw you a bridge
hanging in the void of your myths
and Mediterranean illusions.
-5-
In your cafes
modernism is smoked
like Cuban cigars,
their leaves smoothed on the thighs
of a professional moment
in a prostitute’s dress.
-6-
I saw books get botox
to seduce their readers.
Your newspapers do not read your mind
your cafes do not change
the wheels or the oil of their language’s engine.
Billboards in your streets wear
naked thighs and bosoms
that relax on sandy beaches.
In their bronze complexion,
we read about a future
that immigrated to other countries.
-7-
The difference in the value of foreign currency
assumes the job of angels
and opens momentarily the doors of paradise.
-8-
I see your face
on an airport’s electric door,
or on a passport stamp,
from which two eyes,
on whose balcony police dogs sit,
look.
-9-
Beirut,
where the borders cross
I saw men made of barbed wire
imprisoning the horizon
inside the pupils of their eyes.
-10-
You are visiting me now,
I wish I could settle you in my language,
I wish I could give you a room
and invite you to a glamorous evening.
I wish I could let you lie naked
on my bed between my arms.
Beirut,
you do not need to forgive me,
I do not fall in love easily with Arab cities,
watching their bellies dancing
with the belt
of death, poverty, tents, and slums
wrapped around their naked waists
does not excite me.
The clock lost its handles.
It looks featureless,
like your soul,
it has lost the road to a body.
* From a divan in process with the same title.
$90,000 a Day for One Photograph? David Yarrow Doesn’t Blink an Eye.
The British photographer, known for cinematic set pieces, discusses his iconic images, navigating art and business, and the one thing you should never call him
By Josh Sims
David Yarrow isn’t ashamed about making money — a lot of money — from his photography. And that’s for deeply personal reasons.
“One thing detractors say is ‘yeah, well, Yarrow, he’s not a photographer, he’s a businessperson,’ and that doesn’t hurt me at all, because one of the problems with the creative arts is that creatives don’t have a business mentality and that’s dangerous,” the affable, straight-talking Scot tells InsideHook. “My mum was an artist and she went bust because she didn’t care about the business side. One of my mentors says, ‘It’s not creative if it’s not commercial,’ and there’s a lot of truth in that. There’s false pride in poverty in the arts.”
Yarrow started out as a sports photographer — he took that shot of a triumphant Diego Maradona, held aloft by his teammates at the 1986 World Cup — decided he wasn’t so into it, went into banking and launched a hedge fund, and then returned to what he decided had really been his passion all along. He effectively reinvented wildlife photography, by being extremely patient and getting dangerously intimate with his subjects, and by offering a fresh, often awe-inspiring perspective that glorified his subject.
“The best pictures you can look at for a long time and show you something you haven’t seen before,” Yarrow posits. But don’t you dare call him a “wildlife photographer.”
“I think wildlife photography has become quite toxic. And if anyone [on my team] calls me a wildlife photographer, they get fired,” the 56-year-old laughs. “I remember talking to the chairman of the Tate and he told me that the one supposed art form that left him cold was wildlife photography. I asked him why and he said, ‘Because I know what a fucking giraffe looks like. I don’t need to be told what a giraffe looks like, and then to be told it’s art.’ It’s not. Go on social media every day and there are all these people on safari in Kenya with long lenses just taking pictures of leopards. That’s not art. All you’ve proven is that you’ve been able to pay to be in a beautiful place, you’ve got good camera equipment and you’ve got lucky.”
Being able to position photography as art, Yarrow says, quite upfront about it, is where the money is. Sure, he has deep affinity for the great outdoors and its inhabitants — a lot of the charity work he does with chums Chris Hemsworth and Cindy Crawford is to raise money to tackle disastrous events like the enormous bushfires in Australia in 2019 and 2020. You can’t not have an affinity for it when you’re face-to-face with a grizzly bear or a lion, he laughs, though he’s always been more worried around people than teeth and claws.
“People can do three things that animals can’t: They can get high — well, actually gorillas can get high too, but not in a bad way; they can get drunk; and they can buy guns,” he says. And that’s a very bad combination.
Yarrow is also very aware that his necessarily pin-sharp shots tend to work particularly well large-scale and that the people with the money to spend on art tend to have a lot of wall space to fill. Just as Jeff Bezos once said he wanted to build the most “consumer-centric” company ever, so, Yarrow jokes, he set out to be the most “wall-centric” artist ever.
Take, for example, his preference for black and white images. This is partly a product of his love of the cinema. Yarrow shoots in color but prints in black and white, because, he says, there’s a timelessness to monochrome, a reductiveness to it.
“Someone said that if you photograph people in color you see their clothes, if you do it in black and white you see their souls,” he says. But also because, in all seriousness, black and white works with anyone’s interior scheme. “Some colors are horrible to have on your wall. Yes, the monetizing is shameless,” he chuckles.
It’s just as well, since he seems to spend it as fast as he makes it. He is best known now for his monumental set pieces — essentially movie productions distilled into one frame — that can cost in the ballpark of $90,000 a day to shoot.
One of his most arresting shots, “Get the Fxxx Off My Boat,” part of a series based around The Wolf of Wall Street, involved catching multiple posed models, a popping champagne bottle and flying dollar bills on the back of a yacht. At sea. With a helicopter hovering overhead. And with, front and center, a real wolf, also posing. None of it is CGI.
That kind of expenditure really focuses the mind, Yarrow says.
“It’s not for the practitioner to call what they do art, but I did see an opportunity in that if the outside world saw my work as art then it would be willing to pay quite a lot for a picture,” he says.
He recalls taking a photograph of a shark attack in South Africa in 2011. It was printed around the world and he thought he’d finally entered the big time. When the check for all the publication rights came, it was around $17,000.
“And I calculated that it had cost me $18,500 to take the picture. So I thought, OK, this is the world’s worst industry,” he says. “But then a lawyer calling himself Jaws phoned and said he wanted a print for his office wall and I sold that one picture to him for $12,000. And that’s when the penny dropped.”
Yarrow spent the next 10 years making connections, showing his work and building a network of some 30 wholesalers around the world to sell it. It may cut against our romantic insistence that artists starve in garrets. Rather, it’s an eminently pragmatic way of getting his prints to collectors — and he now has a lot of dedicated collectors — wherever they and their blank-walled homes may be. And it allows Yarrow to focus on doing what he loves best: taking pictures.
It’s something he thinks he’s always getting better at. He has off weeks, he admits. “But I think you become a better photographer as you get older because [great] photography comes from the soul and your emotions are more mature,” he says.
Or maybe, he chuckles, “it’s just that the cameras are getting better.”
New David Yarrow exhibit 'Changing Lanes' takes over Hilton | Asmus Contemporary
Artists are putting their stamp on Chicago exhibitions to spread messages of human communication, global conservation, racial discrimination, and gender inequality through a variety of mediums with maximum style.
In her sculpture exhibition “Future Fossils: SUM” (Sept. 7 – Nov. 13), Chicago artist Lan Tuazon shows how the 109 tons of waste produced during a person’s lifetime could be repurposed into a functional home. Built to scale and exhibited inside the two-story gallery at the Hyde Park Art Center, Tuazon presents a one-bedroom house that is constructed solely with recovered materials.
To extend the lifespan of used objects, the artist dissects, layers, and presses them into a stratification-like form that mimics fossils. Visitors are invited to contribute by dropping off plastic items to be shredded on site, which will then be turned into raw materials for sheet press companies. “I had no idea how impactful her work would be on piloting new materials from recovered plastics. This immersive installation will truly put into perspective the geologic weight of our consumer habits, while literally building inhabitable structures from waste,” says Art Center Director of Exhibition & Residency Programs Allison Peters Quinn who curated the show.
In partnership with Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Art on theMART will project works by conceptual artist Barbara Kruger (Sep. 17 – Nov. 25). The installation coincides with the Art Institute of Chicago’s presentation of “Thinking of You. I Mean Me. I Mean You.” (Sep. 19 – Jan 24), a comprehensive exhibition of Kruger’s output. “We are honored to feature the work of such a legendary contemporary artist on our platform,” says Cynthia Noble, Executive Director of Art on theMART. “With this installation, our site extends Kruger’s major retrospective beyond the museum walls and into the urban architectural environment, where the art is free and accessible to all. We are so pleased to collaborate with Kruger and the Art Institute on this significant alignment.”
“For more than four decades, the artist has been a consistent, critical observer of the ways in which images and words circulate through culture and more recently, the accelerated modes in which they inhabit our daily lives. At a time when dispersion has replaced distribution and memes rules the realm of visual information, her momentous installation will invite us to pay attention and carefully consider how we relate to one another,” adds Robyn Farrell, Associate Curator, Modern and Contemporary, Art Institute of Chicago.
Art Institute visitors can also view “Bisa Butler: Portraits” (through Sep. 6). This marks the first solo museum exhibition of the artist’s work which uses the traditionally marginalized medium of textiles and quilts to convey personal and historical narratives of the Black experience. “In my work I am telling the story — this African American side — of the American life,” says Butler. “History is the story of men and women, but the narrative is controlled by those who hold the pen.”
On Aug. 27, Hilton | Asmus Contemporary opens its doors for an opening event at 5 p.m. to kick off “Origins” — an exhibition of images by acclaimed National Geographic photographers/filmmakers Cristina Mittermeier and Paul Nicklen, both of whom are co-founders of Sea Legacy.
“The whole premise of Sea Legacy is that we’re experts at visual communication, and we’re going to be partnering with like-minded organizations that have the same mission that we do, to save the oceans,” explains Mittermeier. “The ocean is the largest ecosystem on our planet, and three billion people depend on coastal and marine resources.” As a ‘National Geographic Woman of Impact’, Mittermeier has worked in more than 100 countries on every continent to connect with an estimated 2.5 billion people about global climate change.
“We have decided to make 2021 our year of conservation. By this, I mean every single sale we make in our gallery this year will benefit a variety of conservation organizations, including organizations that support animals, oceans and other natural resources, in addition to our ongoing support of women’s and children’s causes,” says Arica Hilton, global advocate and Hilton | Asmus Contemporary founder. “Through the arts, Hilton | Asmus Contemporary is dedicated to making every single step and every breath we take, have a purpose. A global purpose. A higher purpose. We will be working with artists who search for solutions addressing the plight of our environment and the human condition.”
Paintings and mixed media works by Swedish artist Anna U Davis are showcased in “Reality Check” (through Nov. 28) at Chicago’s Swedish American Museum in Andersonville. The solo exhibition explores gender inequality, racial discrimination and climate change.
The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago presents “Bani Abidi: The Man Who Talked Until He Disappeared” (Sep. 4 – June 5) showcasing nearly two decades of work by multidisciplinary Pakistani artist Bani Abidi. The artist uses her upbringing in Karachi and experiences while studying at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago to inform her work which satirically critiques those in power. Organized by Sharjah Art Foundation, the exhibition includes video, photography, sound, and installations that explore transcultural connections with humor.
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First image: Bisa Butler. The Safety Patrol, 2018. Cavigga Family Trust Fund. © Bisa Butler.
Second Image: Untitled (Truth), 2013, Digital image courtesy of Barbara Kruger. ©
PAUL NICKLEN
Paul Nicklen (Canadian) is a visual artist and marine biologist who has documented both the beauty and the plight of our planet for over 20 years. Paul’s photography informs and connects by creating an emotional bond with wild subjects in extreme conditions.
After a 20-year career of photographing for journalistic publications like National Geographic, Paul’s perpetuating dream is to revisit his archives for the true artistic gems and release them to the world. His ongoing journey is to continue photographing intimate, evocative, powerful subject matter to create a thought-provoking body of work. Paul hopes his viewers look into the eyes of the animals in his photographs and fall in love with their vulnerability.
In addition to being one of the world’s most renowned nature photographers, Paul is a well-known speaker, TED Talks participant, author, and National Geographic Fellow. In the past two decades, Paul has collaborated with scientists, filmmakers, conservationists, and explorers to create awareness and inspire action for global issues such as climate change.
Paul has garnered more than 30 of the highest awards given to any photographer in his field, earning a global following of celebrities, conservationists, and fans.
CRISTINA MITTERMEIER
One of the most respected voices in conservation photography and one of the most influential female photographers in the world, Cristina Mittermeier began her career as a Marine Biologist working in her native Mexico.
For the past twenty-five years, she has dedicated herself to inspiring a global audience to care about the delicate balance between human well-being and healthy ecosystems.
Cristina’s work has exhibited at the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco, The Miller Gallery in Cincinnati, The Paul Nicklen Gallery in New York, Xposure in the UAE , Art Basel Miami, Terras de Salitre/Mar de Mares Festival in Santiago, The Museum of Plastic Pop-Up in New York, The United Nations Headquarters in association with Disney and Girl Up, and at Fotografiska in Stockholm, Sweden.
Cristina is the co-founder of SeaLegacy, the founder and former president of the International League of Conservation Photographers, a board member for the WILD Foundation, an advisor on two major Conservation International programs, an esteemed public speaker, and a recipient of multiple internationally recognized awards for her photography. In 2016, Cristina received the Imaging Award for Photographers who Give Back and in 2018 was acknowledged as a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year.
She is the editor of 26 conservation photography books and her Fine Art Coffee Table book, Amaze, is in its second printing.
Today, Cristina is the Co-founder of the conservation society, SeaLegacy, a National Geographic contributing photographer, a Sony Artisan of Imagery and the editor of 26 coffee table books on conservation issues. She is the first female photographer to reach 1M followers on Instagram and was a 2018 National Geographic Adventurer of the Year. She is acknowledged as one of the most Influential Women in Ocean Conservation in 2018 by Ocean Geographic, and The Men’s Journal recently named her as one of the 18 Most Adventurous Women in the World.
Cristina is a pioneer in the use of powerful and emotive imagery to propel conservation efforts. Born in Mexico, Cristina is a marine biologist, photographer, and writer who specializes in issues surrounding fisheries and indigenous cultures.
Cindy Crawford, 55, shows off her age-defying supermodel figure as she slips back into her denim hotpants to recreate her iconic 1992 Pepsi ad
Supermodel Cindy made her first appearance in a Pepsi TV commercial during the 1992 Super Bowl The original featured Cindy wearing a white tank top and blue jean shorts with big hoop earrings on She was driving a Lamborghini and then stops at a gas station for a can of soda which she sucks down And then in 2002 she was asked to appear in a very similar ad, this time for Diet Pepsi Cindy recreated the iconic ad to raise funds for the American Family Children's Hospital in Madison, where her late brother was treated for leukemia Tragically, Jeffery died of childhood leukemia when he was three-years-old
Cindy Crawford lived up to her supermodel status as she slipped back into a white tank top and her blue denim Daisy Duke shorts to recreate her iconic 1992 Pepsi Super Bowl ad.
Taking to Instagram on Tuesday, the catwalk queen, 55, showed off her age-defying figure in the photoshoot, taken by photographer David Yarrow, to raise funds for the American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, where her late brother Jeff was treated for leukemia.
Posing by a red vintage car, Cindy wowed as she once again donned silver hoop earrings and styled her hair into a big bouncy blow out.
Super Cindy: Cindy Crawford lived up to her supermodel status as she slipped back into a white tank top and her blue denim Daisy Duke shorts to recreate her iconic 1992 Pepsi Super Bowl ad
The shoot was set at the Halfway House Cafe, where Cindy shot the famous commercial. Two wolves sat in the retro supercar as Cindy fuelled up on gas.
Crawford shared what the new Pepsi experience was like. ‘It’s always a pleasure and a thrill to work with my friend @davidyarrow,’ began the Versace model.
Wow: Taking to Instagram on Tuesday, the catwalk queen, 55, showed off her age-defying figure in the photoshoot, taken by photographer David Yarrow, to raise funds for the American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin
Strike a pose: Slipping into a pair of red stiletto heels, Cindy looked just as good as she did in 1992 as she displayed toned arms, long legs and very small waistline in the tiny shorts and low-scoop vest
Her pack: The shoot was set at the Halfway House Cafe, where Cindy shot the famous commercial. Two wolves sat in the retro supercar as Cindy fuelled up on gas
‘And even more so when it’s for a good cause. We returned back to the original Halfway House from the famous @pepsi commercial I did in 1992 to recreate the moment (with a David Yarrow twist) in hopes of raising funds for the American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison Wisconsin where my brother was treated for leukemia.’
Crawford was born in DeKalb, Illinois, and raised with her two sisters, Chris and Danielle. Their brother Jeffery died of childhood leukemia at age three.
Cindy continued: ‘So far, with the help of David’s gallery network across the globe supporting the art and its sales — we’ve already raised 1 million dollars for the cause.’
Important cause: Crawford wants to raise funds to help the hospital where her late brother Jeffery was treated for childhood leukemia. He tragically died aged three
She is generous: Crawford shared what the new Pepsi experience was like. ‘It’s always a pleasure and a thrill to work with my friend @davidyarrow,’ began the Versace model
Close to her heart: ‘And even more so when it’s for a good cause. We returned back to the original Halfway House from the famous @pepsi commercial I did in 1992 to recreate the moment (with a David Yarrow twist) in hopes of raising funds’
Devastating: Crawford (right) was born in DeKalb, Illinois, and raised with her two sisters, Chris and Danielle. The family tragically lost their brother Jeff when he was three
She then credited the members of her glam squad.
‘I also have to thank my dear friend, hairstylist @peter.savic who did the iconic hair for the original commercial… so i was thrilled he was able to be here for this version as well!’ said the wife of Rande Gerber.
‘Thanks also to @samvissermakeup for makeup and @allowitzstyles for styling. I think we nailed it! Such a fun day –– I can’t wait to show you more. More on stories xo.’
Stars praised her move. Reese Witherspoon said, ‘Truly gorgeous ! And for a great cause ❤️.’ Helena Christensen said, ‘❤️cool in every way.’
Thrice before: Cindy seen far left in 1992, then in another ad in 2002 and on the far right she is seen in 2018
The winner? Some say that Cindy looked her very best in the original 1992 ad while others prefer a more mature Crawford
The winner? Some say that Cindy looked her very best in the original 1992 ad while others prefer a more mature Crawford
The original featured Crawford in a tank top and jean shorts – made from her own jeans she brought to the set that day – driving a Lamborghini and stopping at a rural gas station to buy a can of soda.
Two young boys in a nearby field can be seen watching on in awe and amazement as the beauty guzzles the can in one go.
‘It was one of those moments in my career that when I walked down the street, people were like, “Pepsi!” Or I’d be at a bar and people would send me over a Pepsi,’ Crawford said, laughing. ‘And it’s funny because during Halloween a lot of women will dress up as me in that commercial. It’s like an easy Halloween costume.’
In the 2018 ad she was with her son Presley Walker Gerber who was a teen at the time.
Crawford also appeared in an an ad for Diet Pepsi in 2002, where she drove to the same gas station, this time dressed in a tight white blouse and jean shorts, driving a white Jeep.
Crawford’s modeling talents have not only extended to her son – her daughter, Kaia Jordan Gerber, is also a top model.
What are the symptoms of leukaemia in children?
The ad on the back of a bus: Here the ad i seen for the David Yarrow show which runs until November 6, 2021
Engine Of Change
The future of our planet and of humanity relies not just in lifting women up, but in giving them the opportunity to lead and to help invent a new economic era… because what’s good for women and girls, is good for Earth.
— Cristina Mittermeier
When we do this, we change the cycle. We build change. Seeds of change. Winds of change. Oceans of change. Climate change. Catalyst of change. Cristina Mittermeier is an engine of Change.
She is a Sony Artisan of Imagery, National Geographic Woman of Impact, founder of the International League of Conservation Photographers and co-founder of Sea Legacy, an organization combining decades of experience in conservation, photography, and communications, with the latest digital and social technologies, to build a healthy future for our oceans.
She is a woman whose influence has grown beyond her Mexico City roots as a marine biologist, artist, author and global champion for a sustainable earth. Her accomplishments fill an impossibly long list of environmental protections working in over 120 countries, from fisheries, biodiversity and the plight of indigenous peoples around the world to the support and education of young women and girls.
Mittermeier’s success as an activist and her ability to see into the needs of our world comes from a special place. All of her success and the mission that drives her comes from her ability to truly see the world and people as they are. Her provocative, insightful images come from a much deeper place when you understand Mittermeier’s focus behind the camera:
“There are some who believe that when you photograph a person, you capture an image of their soul. When photographing people, I have always focused on creating a photo that captures their essence as a human. My profound love for taking portraits is because they have such a deep narrative- a lifetime of stories within a single image.” ~ Cristina Mittermeier talks about “Lady With the Goose.”
For International Women’s Day, German automobile manufacturer Mercedes-Benz chose Mittermeier as a central figure in their global initiative, She’s Mercedes. She’s Mercedes recognizes her ability to “inspire, connect and empower women in creating a dialogue that transcends cultures, industries and experience.” In doing so, Mittermeier’s conservation and photography honors the company’s storied traditions established, in part, by one of its pioneering founders, Bertha Benz.
Mercedes-Benz was founded on a dream to utilize technology in a way that would enhance the lives of people and the overall progress of humanity. As the wife of Karl Benz, Bertha was instrumental in supporting his vision of an engine-powered vehicle. But it was Bertha’s insistence that he use her dowry before the couple was married to save the fledgling company as it struggled financially, in the early stages. Further to this, she also suggested technical enhancements such as adding wire insulation and leather brake pads, during the initial creation of this new “horseless carriage.”
In fact, Bertha Benz was so committed to advancing progress as quickly as possible that she secretly took the first long-distance journey in the company’s inaugural motor car, traveling 105 km (65 miles) with her two teenage sons. Karl had no idea and during the rigorous drive, Bertha solved technical issues and proved to doubters that his 1888 invention was safe and reliable.
The confluence between Benz’s work and Mittermeier’s is obvious, more than one hundred years later. Mittermeier uses her camera, embarking on her own long-distance journeys to document the plight of our oceans and the effects of unsustainable living habits on our planet. As a trailblazing spokesperson for the damaging effects of climate change, it’s inspiring to see her recognized and supported by the very company that Bertha Benz helped establish.
Who would have thought that the connection between these two heroic women would run so deep? Benz ushered in mobility and progress, while Mittermeier advocates for cleaner technologies and progress away from petroleum-powered vehicles. This bold move by Mercedes-Benz recognizes Mittermeier’s influence as an advocate and spokesperson for the damaging effects of climate change. Mittermeier’s collaboration with the very company that Benz helped to establish speaks to the role that every company should play in combating the devastating effects of the petroleum industry.
By the year 2022, the mission of Mercedes-Benz is carbon neutral production in all European plants (and worldwide by 2039) through renewable energy sources, such as wind power and other clean forms of energy. Once again, the automobile giant will need technological ingenuity and financial investments to change production methods, renovate factories, overhaul supply chains and develop new models of electric vehicles; all this while reducing production of the combustion engine within the next 20 years.
By promoting the use of hybrid-gas and electric powered cars, Cristina Mittermeier is driving change into the future. The theme for She’s Mercedes is Change Your Mindset. And that is what Mercedes-Benz has done. They have changed their mission and business model in accordance with their values.
“We have set a clear course to help prevent further acceleration of climate change,” the auto maker said in a statement, adding that the Paris climate accord is “more than an obligation — it’s our conviction.”
By using art as a tool, Mittermeier exposes the truths about the effects of climate change, our oceans, and the lifeblood of our existence. The oceans are under siege and not indestructible. They are the healing source of life and regulator of our climate. Oceans provide food and medicines for over seven billion people, yet they have become a holding tank for over 8 million metric tons of plastic – used once, and discarded. The implications of discarding a plastic water bottle or a single straw can no longer be ignored.
The extent of our negligent behavior can be seen, as Mittermeier suggests, as far as the polar regions and the coldest places on Earth. Antarctica is not immune to the immense threat of climate change. In addition, large commercial fisheries exploit foundation species, like a small crustacean called krill, a staple in the diet of whales, penguins and seals, and whose population dynamics are barely understood. A growing tourism destination, increasing pressure is put on fragile landscapes of the southern regions.
As consumer awareness about the harmful effects of gas emissions and the production industry that supports gas powered vehicle manufacturing, it is up to all of us to change the way we travel in the present and into the future. Our freedom to easily navigate our lives and explore our earth must acknowledge the footprint on our environment and the species that inhabits it.
“This year marks Antarctica’s 200th anniversary since it was first discovered and, unfortunately, it’s also the year where the highest temperatures in the ice continent’s history were recorded. This past February, temperatures soared to 20.75°C (69.3°F), alarming scientists and conservationists across the globe. World leaders are joining together to consider the establishment of three major MPAs (Marine Protected Areas) that would span across East Antarctica, the Antarctic Peninsula, and the Weddell Sea.
This would protect almost 1% of the ocean globally and approximately 4 million square kilometers. This is our chance to protect ecosystems to provide climate stability and to mitigate the effects of global warming on future generations. Think about that! At our fingertips is the creation of the greatest act of ocean conservation in the history of humanity, and it can all happen in a pandemic year!”
Mittermeier reminds us that 90% of the fish have disappeared from the oceans so every protection counts. “When I take stock of the challenges facing humanity and planet Earth, I cannot help but wonder, how can we aspire to solve massive global existential threats like climate change and inequality when half of our planet’s population is disenfranchised participate in the solutions?”
Women make up slightly more than half the global population. If we are serious about engaging every sentinel to save our great earth, we must ensure women have the opportunity to change the trajectory and find solutions.
Written By | Arica Hilton
Conservation in the Time of Corona
The new decade has brought with it some unexpected challenges, but those same obstacles have given us an opportunity to focus on reaching out to our online community, and to explore new methods of digital story telling.
At this time when science is critical for our survival and art is necessary for our sanity, the conservation photography of Paul Nicklen and Cristina Mittermeier is the perfect union of these two complementary paradigms. Hilton Asmus Contemporary couldn’t be representing a more inspirational and dedicated pair of humans.
Paul Nicklen is an acclaimed National Geographic photographer, filmmaker, and marine biologist who has spent the last twenty years documenting the natural beauty of our planet in an effort to illustrate the plights of critical species and their fragile ecosystems, while advocating for their protection. As a National Geographic assignment photographer, he is particularly famous for his awe-inspiring images of polar wilderness regions and the unique animals that call these harsh and rugged habitats home. Nicklen’s sensitive and evocative imagery has garnered many of the highest awards given to any photographer in his field, including the BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year and the prestigious World Press Photo for Photojournalism.
Cristina Mittermeier is a marine biologist, photographer, writer, and conservationist. Fifteen years ago, she founded the prestigious International League of Conservation Photographers (ILCP) to provide a platform for photographers covering environmental issues. She primarily specializes in creating images related to ocean conservation and indigenous peoples. Mittermeier is recognized as one of the World’s Top 40 Most Influential Outdoor Photographers, was the recipient of Smithsonian Conservation Photographer of the Year Award in 2010, and was named one of National Geographic’s 2018 Adventurers of the Year. Cristina’s work has appeared in hundreds of publications, including National Geographic Magazine, McLean’s and TIME.
Together, Cristina and Paul founded SeaLegacy in 2014. The goal of this Canadian nonprofit is to “bring together the world’s best photographers, conservationists, scientists, storytellers and strategists to lead a bold new movement to engage one billion people in ocean conservation.” SeaLegacy’s three-pronged approach of leading expeditions, fueling campaigns, and implementing solutions is united by a focus on extraordinary visual storytelling. “I’m fortunate to be able to lead some of the world’s best photographers and film makers to the farthest corners of our oceans,” says Paul. “It’s our job to bring the oceans to you.” SeaLegacy uses its massive media footprint of over six million followers to rally global support for projects that invest in community-centered solutions that help build healthy and abundant marine ecosystems. As Cristina explains, “Extraordinary opportunities exist to restore and sustainably develop our oceans in order to protect them and sustain all life on this planet.”
It’s a privilege for us at Hilton Asmus Contemporary to represent the gorgeous work of this truly visionary team. Paul and Cristina were kind enough to join us earlier this week from their home in Vancouver for the virtual launch of their show at our gallery. It was enlightening to hear firsthand about their mission at SeaLegacy, and a pleasure to get a peak into their exciting and unique lives. Two nights in a row – April 2nd and 3rd – they transported us all over the planet with their stories. Paul closed out the live Instagram feed last night by regaling us with a tale of a Grizzly bear he called Morris who chose to eat his salmon dinner right next to Paul while he sipped on a nightcap. These lively and personal background narratives bring the photos to life.
Once it’s safe to start going back to our regular activities, we can’t wait to invite everyone to come to the gallery and enjoy each one of these stunning images. When you view their photographs, they pull you in and hold your attention, making you yearn to know everything about the subject. The color photos will be a feast for your eyes, while the black and whites will mesmerize you with their details. Each composition is so saturated with life that you’ll swear you can hear the ice crunching under your feet, and feel the humid air of the tropics on your skin.
We have dubbed 2020 our Year of Conservation, and the tireless efforts put forth by Paul and Cristina to protect our priceless natural wonders, embody this theme to perfection. Even though we may currently be apart, their art excels at bringing us together, and reminding us how important it is to value and protect every ecosystem on this beautiful planet we are endlessly lucky to call home.
Written By | Alex Rose
Photographer David Yarrow on the Inspiration Behind His New ‘Wild West’ Series Starring Cindy Crawford and Cara Delevingne
Yarrow traveled to Montana and Wyoming to create these quintessentially American images.
British photographer and conservationist David Yarrow is celebrated for his black-and-white photos of far-flung territories, endangered landscapes, and nature’s most majestic creatures. This fall, after a long quarantine, the photographer set off for Wyoming and Montana to shoot his new series “The Wild West.” Headlined by supermodels Cindy Crawford and Cara Delevingne, the series captures quintessentially American scenes from the cross-country road trip, which culminated at a Western saloon. “The Wild West” series also features Chief John Spotted Tail, of the Lakota tribe, who appears self-styled in his images.
The new images—along with many of Yarrow’s iconic works from earlier series—are currently on view at Chicago’s Hilton | Asmus Contemporary. A portion of the profits from sales will be go to benefit charities and organizations supported by Yarrow and his models.
Below, Yarrow shares his inspiration behind a few of his new photographs:
“We have all, at one time or another, entered a bar, and immediately felt out of place. At the most extreme level this can evoke a sense of trespassing. This was very much the narrative behind this photograph. To be greeted by an overtly territorial crew with menace and attitude. But, for the story to work, two things had to coalesce as—the characters and the interior. I like playing with the cold, it adds a visceral layer to the story and in this case, it hints at an outpost on the final frontier. Surely the further off the beaten track we travel, the greater the chance of being the outsider. This is a frame that exhausts every inch available in the camera and that was my intent. There were so many characters I wanted to include, but I was also reluctant to lose the mood of the frozen saloon…. Our key asset was, of course, Cindy Crawford, and she had to have sovereignty of the joint. She can play a badass very well and that was her ascribed role.”
“The Pioneer bar in Virginia City has offered so much to us over the years and we are acutely conscious not to overplay our hand here. After all, there are many other weathered saloons in the West. We don’t want to be repetitive in our story telling…The Pioneer is emphatically the best bar known to us. It has depth and the wagon wheel on the ceiling is ideally positioned. To bring such a celebrated and relevant woman as Cara to Montana is fresh ground. Put her in front of the Eiffel Tower and it is a new look on the Eiffel Tower. I can’t think of any other woman in the world I would prefer to play this role. These are not easy images to execute as there is such limited light. Depth of field and shutter speeds are therefore compromised. Cara would always be sharp—that was easy—then we had to hope for some luck elsewhere. Cameras have improved so much over the years in terms of ability to work in low light. I could not have done this 10 years ago. But you are pushing the camera right to the edge of its capability.”
“Once we found the caterpillar road that dissects this picture, I knew that we had the canvas on which to continue our road series that started in 2018… The only traffic was the occasional oil worker or perhaps someone who was totally lost… The sense of place is palpable. This is the America that so many know and love, with its long roads running to the horizon with either side exuding a simple sense of calm and solitude. No other country in the world offers road trips as visually rewarding as America and they are integral to the fabric of the American dream. The snowfall the previous night added another layer to the narrative both on the road itself and on the prairies. We were lucky that the snow stopped and the light picked up. It adds warmth to an image already glowing with positivity and joy. Willie Nelson was surely singing “On the Road Again” on the car radio with the volume turned up to the maximum level.”
“The senior Elder of the fabled Lakota tribe is Chief John Spotted Tail. We spent two days with him in northern Wyoming and he was so excited to wear the headpiece that only the most senior Native American chiefs like him can wear. His attire was emphatically his decision, not ours. Their heritage is integral to their souls. The ground in front of Devils Tower has film history. It is, of course, where Spielberg shot Close Encounters of a Third Kind immediately after the release of Jaws in 1975. More poignantly, it is sacred land for Native Americans, and, at dawn, before our early morning shoot, John and his wife, Tamara Stands and Looks Back, spent some time there praying. At around 8:30 am, the low hanging clouds lifted above the iconic geographical landmark and shafts of light lit up our canvas. We had our moment. Later that day, when I showed Chief John Spotted Tail this image, he shed a tear and I am proud to admit I did too. It was one of the most privileged days I have ever had in the field.”
David Yarrow’s “The Wild West” series is on view at Hilton| Asmus Contemporary through June 2021.
Written By | Artnet