Mona Miri holds many titles in the art world. As photo editor and director of photography for Boston Magazine, she is tasked with overseeing all cover-to-cover photography for each publication. She is also a regular contributing photographer. Even with these accomplishments, she is perhaps best known for her work on changing the landscape. Her ICE project is one such work, highlighting the melting of glaciers as a result of climate change.
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The ICE project is a set of five photographs that reflect the change in the spread and depth of glacial ice over a period of time. The project also reflects Meri’s passion and focus on the environment through her practice as a sustainability photographer.
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Each photo is described in detail by the photographer. As an overview, the first and fifth images are binary images. It aims to show the landscape before and after the different areas. Two national parks are represented at work: Glacier National Park in Montana and Chugach National Forest in Alaska. Furthermore, the series previously featured a celebration of Earth Month.
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“In June 2019, ICE PROJECT #1 was accepted as a finalist in Earth Photo London, which was shown at the Royal Geological Society in London with a one-year traveling exhibition in the National Forests of England,” said Merry.
Ice #1
The Grinnell Glacier in Montana has experienced excessive glacier melting in the past decade. The glacier is melting so rapidly that it is one of the most visibly affected by climate change in an American park. Soon enough, Glacier Park, hence the name, will have no more glaciers due to rising temperatures.
In this image on the right, taken in 2017 at Iceberg Lake in the Grinnell Glacier, you can see the receding icebergs and the receding mouth of the glacier, which is now relatively a lake. The image on the left, taken in 1910 by John Morton, in collaboration with the University of Montana Photo Archives, shows Grinnell Peak looking down at the mouth of the glacier. Clearly the contrast of melting glaciers in the comparison before and after.
Ice #2
The Portage Glacier in the Chugach National Forest in Alaska is another glacier that has experienced rapid change in the effects of climate change in the past 100 years. The photo on the left was taken in 1939 from the USGS archive. It shows the end or mouth of the glacier as it appeared during this time. On the right, the front of the glacier in 2017. Since 1939, the end and mouth of the glacier have receded more than three miles from where they were in 1939.
Ice #3
Portage Glacier, close-up, showing glacier runoff from a suspended glacier. This happens when there is excessive and rapid melting. It’s also a natural process where icy waters help inhabit during the summer months. In 2019, Alaska recorded the hottest summer on record, resulting in excessive melt in the area.
Ice #4
Another close-up view of Portage Glacier and glacier runoff from a retreating hanging glacier.
Ice #5
Portage Glacier in 1958 is seen on the left image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It shows the glacier and Portage Lake filled with glaciers and ice. Glaciers have already started to retreat since the 1930s. The Portage Glacier once ended up on land, on the other side of what is now Portage Lake.
About photographer Mona Miri
Meri started her career as a landscape art photographer. She was always drawn to the changing landscapes. In addition to the ecological series, her portfolio includes landscapes, industrial landscapes, and urban elements. Her work has appeared in The Boston Globe, LA Times, Improper Bostonian Magazine, PDN Magazine, Digital Photographer magazine in the US and UK, CMYK Photography Magazine and more. Her photographs have also been included in the Copley Society Art Gallery (CO | SO) in Boston. In addition to being recognized in print, her self-portrait, Re ect, has received the JoAnne Gonzalla Award for Excellence in Art and the Sterling Planet Environmental Stewardship Award.
According to her biography, “In January of 2009, she exhibited her work in sustainable photography sponsored by the City of San Francisco at the Somemart Cultural Center. She currently resides in the Fort Point Artists’ Community, has been shown at FPAC, at Envoy Gallery and has been involved in open studios since 2015. ”
As a photographer, Miri’s work on the ICE PROJECT project highlights changes that seem to occur too slowly for the human eye to consume. She turned it into an easily digestible and poignant statement about the irreversible harm of climate change.
+ Photography by Mona Miri
Mona Miri’s photo
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