Tongue of Matanuska Glacier Possibly 1988 - 1990

Curator: This is David Maisel’s photograph, "Tongue of Matanuska Glacier," now residing at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: Stark. Bleak. It makes me think of Moby Dick and the sublime terror of nature's indifference. Curator: Indeed. Maisel's aerial perspective offers a unique vantage point. Note how the monochrome emphasizes the textures, hinting at the immense geological forces at play and the glacier's slow, relentless march. Editor: It's a landscape photograph, yes, but I see powerful symbols of decay and the ephemerality of even the most seemingly permanent structures. The glacier becomes a metaphor for time itself. Curator: I think we can also consider the environmental impact of its melting—the glacial tongue recedes, leaving behind exposed rock and altered ecosystems, revealing the raw materials of our planet. Editor: Yes, a poignant reminder of nature's power and our precarious place within it. Curator: I will never look at a glacier the same way again.