DAWNA MUELLER
Procession For The Fallen, 2021, Pigment Print on Archival Paper, 24"x36".
STATEMENT
The confluence of nature and humans is the predominant theme in my work. As an environmental photographer, I focus on issues that cause us to recalibrate our relationship to complex and fragile ecosystems. My work in the last 6 months has been photographing the old growth rainforest in the Fairy Creek Watershed as well as documenting the RCMP enforcement and arrests for Focus in Victoria and Saving Earth magazines.
My series ‘The Confluence of Cognitive Dissonance’ was created from my time spent there and is a reflection of the current conflict occurring on the frontlines between the forest defenders and the police. My work highlights both the magnitude and complexity of nature as well as the struggle for its survival amidst a fervent exploitation for its resources. The work is influenced from the world of conceptual art and the juxtaposition of contradictions can be seen between the abstract and the representation. The visual disruption reflects the increasing erosion of the forest’s indexicality due to human activity despite the intervention.
The confluence of nature and humans is the predominant theme in my work. As an environmental photographer, I focus on issues that cause us to recalibrate our relationship to complex and fragile ecosystems. My work in the last 6 months has been photographing the old growth rainforest in the Fairy Creek Watershed as well as documenting the RCMP enforcement and arrests for Focus in Victoria and Saving Earth magazines.
My series ‘The Confluence of Cognitive Dissonance’ was created from my time spent there and is a reflection of the current conflict occurring on the frontlines between the forest defenders and the police. My work highlights both the magnitude and complexity of nature as well as the struggle for its survival amidst a fervent exploitation for its resources. The work is influenced from the world of conceptual art and the juxtaposition of contradictions can be seen between the abstract and the representation. The visual disruption reflects the increasing erosion of the forest’s indexicality due to human activity despite the intervention.
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BIOGRAPHY
Dawna lives between Victoria, BC and Zurich, Switzerland. She studied Photography at CAP Fotoschule in Zurich (2015-2017), and has been actively working as an environmental photographer documenting the effects of climate change in the Polar Regions and Swiss Alps. Dawna has exhibited her large-scale photographs in both Switzerland and Canada and her work is held in private and public collections internationally. Alongside her photographic practice, Dawna is a Climate Reality Leader with Al Gore’s Climate Reality Foundation. Dawna is currently completing a Masters Degree of Photography at Falmouth University, UK, focussing on the interpretation of the rights of nature as they transcend from Indigenous law to Western Law. |
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