Spring 2019 Tanner Center Artist in Residence
Christopher Jordan
At the end of February, internationally acclaimed photographer, artist, and filmmaker Christopher Jordan will spend a week on campus. In addition to offering lectures and presentations, Jordan will visit classes and interact with students and faculty. Events that are free and open to the public include:
- February 27 - screening of documentary film ALBATROSS at 6:30 pm in the Student Center Theater, followed by a talk-back with Christopher Jordan
- February 28 - A.P.E.X. lecture at 11:30 am in the Gilbert Great Hall
- February 28 - SUMA gallery talk at 7:00 pm
Jordan’s work has been featured in galleries and exhibits around the world, with his 2008 TEDtalk, “Turning Powerful Stats into Art,” garnering over 1.7 million views on Youtube. Through his lens, Jordan explores contemporary mass culture from multiple perspectives, connecting the viewer viscerally to the enormity and power of humanity’s collective unconscious. He challenges individuals to look both inward and outward at the complex landscapes of our collective choices.
Jordan began work on his film ALBATROSS in 2008 when he learned of an environmental tragedy taking place on a tiny island in the center of the North Pacific Ocean. He and his team travelled to Midway Island in September of 2009, where they photographed and filmed thousands of young albatrosses that lay dead on the ground, their stomachs filled with plastic. Jordan said, “The experience was devastating, not only for what it meant for the suffering of the birds, but also for what it reflected back to us about the destructive power of our culture of mass consumption, and humanity's damaged relationship with the living world.” After years of development, including eight trips to the island and over 400 hours of footage, ALBATROSS premiered last year on Earth Day.
An exhibit of Jordan’s art will be on display in the Grace A. Tanner Gallery in SUMA from February 19-March 15.