My attempt to explain the timing of the Ardh Kumbh Mela:
Haridwar is the place for the well-known Kumbh Mela. Kumbh Mela is a Hindu religious gathering which is celebrated for forty days and is the biggest religious ceremony in the world; “Kumbh Mela” translates to “Festival of Urn”. At any given place, the Kumbh Mela is held once in 12 years. There is a difference of around 3 years between the Kumbh Melas at each of four locations. The exact date is determined according to a combination of zodiac positions of the Jupiter, the Sun and the Moon. The Purna Kumbh Mela, the biggest and the most auspicious fair, occurs every twelve years and is organized in rotation among four places where drops of the sacred nectar spilled over: Allahabad (Prayag), Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik. A mass pilgrimage for the Hindu community of India, the Kumbh Mela is rumored to be one of the largest congregation of sages, yogis, ascetics, mendicants, men, women and children on the planet. But every sixth year after a Purna Kumbh Mela, an Ardh Kumbh Mela takes place. In the Hindi language the word “Ardh” stands for “half” and “Mela” means “fair”. The “Ardh Kumbh Mela” is called so because it is held at the sixth year and marks the halfway stage between the celebration of the Purna Kumbh Melas every 12 years. The Ardh Mela takes place at Haridwar & Allahabad only. And then there is the mother of all Kumbhs, the Maha Kumbh Mela which happens once every 144 years.
OK, I think they are drinking way too much spilled sacred nectar…
The 2016 Art Wolfe Next-Generation Photographers Grant is now taking applicants from professional nature photographers in the early stages of their careers. Recipients will be selected on the basis of skill, artistic excellence and by demonstrating the promise of future achievement.
From July 31 to August 6, 2016, seven successful applicants will attend a six-day workshop at a remote Lodge in Katmai, Alaska, photographing the spectacular wildlife and rugged landscape.
Sponsored by The Luminous Endowment for Photographers and Art Wolfe, Inc., and made possible with the generous support of Rebecca Jones and the Seneca Sawmill Co.
Some years are publishing years, some are traveling, 2015 was for reshaping the business—a necessity in the ever-changing photography industry. I closed my downtown Seattle gallery and launched this website, focusing my core business online and allowing me the ability to concentrate on other projects, of which there are many.
All the filming that I did in 2014 with Abraham Joffe and the Untitled Film Works crew—in East Africa, Papua New Guinea, Alaska, and here in Seattle—finally came to fruition. Tales by Light is a joint Canon Australia and National Geographic Channel production & I hope it comes to the US soon!
Travel & Photography: The year was bookended by East Africa
While travel slowed somewhat in 2015, I still managed trips to Tanzania (twice), Kenya, Yellowstone National Park (twice), Antarctica, India, Bali, Japan, Iceland, Washington State, Alaska, Svalbard, California, and Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park. The final expedition of the year was to the Danakil Basin of Ethiopia.
Presentations, Gallery Shows, and Articles
I lectured at, among other places, Florida’s Ft. Lauderdale Museum of Fine Art, Seattle’s Benaroya Hall, Portland’s OMSI, and at #OPTIC2015 in New York. Human Canvas took over the Rotella Gallery in Soho for the month of November. DPreview.com published several well-received articles on my experiences photographing emperor penguins, humpback whales, and Iceland.
Books: A year of foreign editions
The Art of the Photograph in Spanish
Earth Is My Witness in French and German by National Geographic
Vanishing Act in USA, German & French
Awards & Honoraria
Earth Is My Witness garnered several publishing awards, including an IBPA Benjamin Franklin and an Independent Publisher. As for moi, I was named honorary chair of Washington Wild.
To call this trip an adventure is an understatement. In early December I traveled with several friends to the northern region of Ethiopia with Erta Ale volcano as the ultimate goal. Fellow traveler Michael Reichmann of Luminous Landscape was a wonderful travel companion and he has written a very good travelogue. Needless to say, we did not make it to the volcano for a variety of reasons. In forty years of photography I can count on one hand the number of times I have been sick or just plain stymied on a trip, so I count myself supremely lucky.
It is important to pay attention to foreground and background elements when trying to compose an effective surreal landscape image. Shot on location in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska. Speaking of which, there is only one spot left in my exclusive Glacier Bay Tour happening next July. Cruising the majestic bay in this small yacht is quite a different experience than traveling in one of the large crowded cruise ships. One caveat- due to the cabin space, the remaining spot is for a man only.
I last photographed in Mahale Mountains National Park, Tanzania for my Y2K project The Living Wild. In the intervening years it seems the chimps have become even more nonchalant around people, brushing past like a person would on a crowded street. There is a definite mental connection, but when they come that close you want to be careful in your movements and eye contact. They are incredibly powerful animals and powerfully intelligent so R-E-S-P-E-C-T is in order.
Lake Natron is a soda lake in the Rift Valley of Tanzania that I have photographed many times. But each time it feels like a new experience. The light, patterns, colors, and textures vary immensely from year to year, even hour to hour. These photos are from my latest trip in October.
For me – early in my career people told me not to bother going to India – they said it had nothing to offer and I should focus elsewhere. So for over a decade that’s what I did. Worst advice ever!
Once I finally saw India with my own eyes—I’ve been back just about every year since and I’ve still just scratched the surface it’s beautiful, complex and wonderful variety of culture, nature, landscape and wildlife.
I’ve added a new photo tour for India in January/February 2016 that can either be just one week or over two depending the time you have. I’ll be taking you along an extraordinary route that combines the best of Inida, full of lore and splendor, punctuated by diverse photographic attractions.
The Kumbh Mela is a rare mass pilgrimage when Hindus from all over the world journey to bathe in the sacred river Ganges. It is considered to be the largest peaceful gathering in the world. I have been to several Kumbhs and can help effectively navigate you through this large and colorful congregation of pilgrims, yogis, and sages. Following the Kumbh we will travel to Ranthambore National Park where a highlight will be the chance to photograph elusive tigers and leopards and other rare wildlife.
July 1st to September 30th of this year was manic, photographically speaking: the Palouse in Eastern Washington, brown bears in Alaska, aerials in Iceland, polar bears in Svalbard, fall color in California’s southern Sierra, and then back home in Washington state to the solitude of Mount Rainier.
