Steep Descents

Social and ecological developments are closely intertwined in our present day. To what extent, however, is usually revealed too late and only at the moment of catastrophe. This is precisely what Julien Guinand’s spectacular documentary photographs show. His camera focuses on two mountain ranges in Japan: the Kii Mountains, on the peninsula of the same name, and the Ashio in northern Tokyo. Both are places that have suffered greatly from man-made climate change, whether through the destructive power of a gigantic typhoon season or the immense stress of industrial copper mining. Guinand has tracked the massive environmental destruction that continues to leave its traces. His pictures are impressive evidence of past disasters, which at the same time open up a warning view of the future.

JULIEN GUINAND (*1975, France) studied literature, music, and art and graduated from the École Nationale Supérieure de la Photographie d’Arles. With his interest in the environment, he captures images that bear witness to the human contribution to climate change and pollution.