IVINS — In the spring of 2005, acclaimed environmental photographer James Balog headed to the Arctic on a tricky assignment for National Geographic: to capture images to help tell the story of the earth’s changing climate.
Coming to the Center for the Arts at Kayenta for a special one-night-only showing on April 17, “Chasing Ice” details glacial ice melting in a “spectacular fashion,” according to a press release for the event.
The Sundance Film Festival movie compresses years into seconds, capturing the ancient mountains of ice in motion as they disappear at a breathtaking rate.
Even with a scientific upbringing, Balog had been a skeptic about climate change. But that first trip north opened his eyes to the biggest story in human history, and sparked within him a personal challenge that would put his career and his very well-being at risk.
Chasing Ice is the story of one man’s mission to change the tide of history by gathering undeniable evidence of our planet’s rapid changes. Within months of that first trip to Iceland, Balog conceived of the boldest expedition of his life: The Extreme Ice Survey.
With a band of young adventurers in tow, Balog began his project, deploying revolutionary time-lapse cameras across the brutal Arctic to capture a multi-year record of the world’s changing glaciers.
As the climate change debate polarizes America and the intensity of natural disasters ramps up globally, Balog finds himself at the end of his tether. Battling untested technology in subzero conditions, he comes face to face with his own mortality.
It takes years for Balog to see the fruits of his labor. His hauntingly beautiful videos tell the story of how our climate is changing in undeniable terms. Chasing Ice depicts a photographer trying to deliver evidence and hope to our carbon-powered planet.
“You’ve never seen images like this before. It deserves to be seen and felt on the big screen,” Robert Redford said, while the New York Times called it “stunning and timely.”
Tickets are $10 and can be purchased online via their website, or by calling the box office at 435-674-2787.
Kayenta Arts Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to develop and create an environment where diverse artistic endeavors can flourish. The Center for the Arts at Kayenta is the actual place where people in the greater southern Utah area come to learn, express, appreciate and celebrate art in all forms.
Event details
- What: Center for the Arts at Kayenta presents “Chasing Ice.”
- When: April 17, 7:30 p.m.
- Where: Center for the Arts at Kayenta, 881 Coyote Gulch Court, Ivins.
- Cost: $10.
- Purchase tickets online here.
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