Ashes and Snow Blog

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Ashes & Snow

March 3, 2005

Ashes and Snow, we don't even know where to begin with this one, but we'll try...Ashes and Snow is a new exhibit featuring more than 200 large-scale photographic works and an accompanying 35mm film by artist Gregory Colbert. The works reveal the artistic nature of animals as they interact with man. Sounds like a typical art exhibit, no? Part of its charm, or rather intrigue, is that renowned architect Shigeru Ban designed a Nomadic Museum to house Ashes and Snow, making him the first to take on such and endeavor. The result is a 45,000 sq ft (that's totally like the same size as our 6th floor walkup apartment!) temporary structure, composed of mostly recyclable materials. The structure will be taken apart and reconstructed at

different ports around the globe.

The opening of this show in New York is coinciding with the release of the artists novel, of which the exhibit is named after. Ah yes, a literary component to the art. Ashes and Snow: A Novel in Letters is a fictional account of a man who, over the course of a yearlong journey, composes 365 letters to his wife. The origin of the title [Ashes and Snow] is revealed in the 365th letter. Colberts photographs and one-hour film loosely reference the travelers encounters and experiences described in the letters.

Okay, so we have art, a film, a museum made of shipping containers and paper tubing, and a novel by the artist. In summary: screw the Gates, saffron is so last week, and head over to the next hot temporary art exhibition thingy. We don't even know what to call it. A fleeting extravaganza of stimuli, perhaps. We're especially excited to check this out after seeing the amazing images on the exhibits website.

Ashes & Snow will run from March 5 to June 6 at Hudson River Parks Pier 54 [between 12th and 13th Streets]. You can purchase tickets here, and get more info here.

The Nomadic Museum

The Nomadic Museum is a temporary structure designed by renowned architect Shigeru Ban to house Gregory Colbert's Ashes and Snow. It is constructed of 152 steel cargo containers, stacked 34 feet high and combined with largely recyclable and reusable materials to form the structural elements. The building’s design evokes the journey of the exhibition as it travels to ports of call around the world.

Inside, visitors enter the gallery space via a central wooden walkway bordered on either side by stone-filled bays over which the unframed artworks are hung from thin cables and suspension rods installed between the columns. This threshold establishes a visual boundary between the physical space of the public walkway and the mystical domain of the images. Above, a diaphanous handmade curtain made of one million pressed paper tea bags from Sri Lanka is suspended from the ceiling, floating 40 feet above the floor.

The Nomadic Museum was first constructed in New York and Santa Monica before moving to Tokyo. It is disassembled and reconstructed as Ashes and Snow travels to other venues in Asia, Europe and South America.

“In exploring the shared language and poetic sensibilities of all animals, I am working towards rediscovering the common ground that once existed when people lived in harmony with animals. The images depict a world that is without beginning or end, here or there, past or present.”

—Gregory Colbert, Creator of Ashes and Snow

Gregory Colbert's Ashes and Snow is an ongoing project that weaves together photographic works, 35mm films, art installations and a novel in letters. With profound patience and an unswerving commitment to the expressive and artistic nature of animals, he has captured extraordinary interactions between humans and animals.

His 21st-century bestiary includes more than 40 totemic species from around the world. Since he began creating his singular work of Ashes and Snow, Colbert has mounted more than 30 expeditions to locations such as India, Egypt, Burma, Tonga, Sri Lanka, Namibia, Kenya, Antarctica, the Azores and Borneo. Ashes and Snow reaches Tokyo in March, 2007.

The show first opened at the Arsenale in Venice, Italy, in 2002 and is charted to travel the globe with no final destination. The Nomadic Museum, the permanent home of Ashes and Snow, debuted in New York (March to June 2005) and made its second stop in Santa Monica (January to May 2006). Ashes and Snow reaches Tokyo in March, 2007.

The title Ashes and Snow suggests beauty and renewal, while also referring to the literary component of the exhibition—a fictional account of a man who, over the course of a yearlong journey, composes 365 letters to his wife. The source of the title is revealed in the 365th letter. Colbert's photographs and one-hour film loosely reference the traveller's encounters and experiences described in the letters.

Colbert, who calls animals "nature's living masterpieces," chose to film animals in their native habitats in an effort to be true to each animal's voice. The film can be viewed as a work of art as well as a poetic field study. The film was edited by two-time Oscar winner Pietro Scalia. It is narrated by Laurence Fishburne (English), and Ken Watanabe (Japanese). Musical collaborators include Michael Brook, David Darling, Heiner Goebbels, Lisa Gerrard, Lukas Foss, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Djivan Gasparyan.

The Ashes and Snow exhibition includes more than 50 large-scale photographic artworks, a one-hour film and two nine-minute film haikus. None of the images have been digitally collaged or superimposed. They record what the artist himself saw through the lens of his camera. While Colbert uses both still and movie cameras, the images are not stills from the film.
The animal subjects of the photographs and films include interactions with both wild animals and also those that have been habituated to human contact.

These mixed media photographic works marry umber and sepia tones in a distinctive encaustic process on handmade Japanese paper. The artworks, each approximately five feet by eight feet, are mounted without explanatory text so as to encourage an open-ended interaction with the images.

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Ashes and Snow Film : (DVD)

ASHES AND SNOW : The Film is a full compilation DVD encompassing the cinematic journey of Gregory Colbert. The DVD envelope is available in assorted colors of hand-made Nepalese paper coated with beeswax, bound by a matching thin waxed chording and red bead enhancement.

PLEASE NOTE : The unique Nepalese paper used for packaging of this DVD is coated with protective beeswax, which can potentially affect the performance of the disk. Please clean the disk in a back and forth (not circular) motion with a soft cloth before each use.

Running Time : 60 minutes

DVD Ashes and Snow Price :

* $35 (Payment services by PayPal)

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ship 2-3 week, it takes about 14/ 21 days Worldwide

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