Going, Going, Gone: Natural History Specimens Speak Of Biodiversity Loss

Marc has spent over a decade photographing endangered and extinct species of animals and plants – specimens found in the collections of The Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. He started working on www.Extinction.photo because he wanted to say something about what is happening in an age in which human activity dominates the environment on an unprecedented scale. The images and stories in the project generate an overview of the accelerating loss of biodiversity, promoting a greater understanding of conservation efforts, reasons for decline (including climate change, habitat loss and overexploitation) and mankind’s stewardship of life on Earth at a critical time in history. His project is a reminder that life on earth is fragile. Marc will discuss the development of the work, the importance of natural history collections in the Anthropocene age and what he learned about conservation in ten years working with the Field Museum’s scientists.  Explore Marc's exitinction project yourself: https://www.extinction.photo/explore/ Speaker:   Marc Schlossman is originally from Chicago and has been based in London since 1988. After graduating from the University of Maine at Orono with a BSc in Wildlife Biology, he studied photojournalism at the London College of Communications. From a beginning in editorial photography and photojournalism in the UK and abroad, Marc’s personal and commissioned projects have evolved using documentary and photojournalism techniques to tell stories in stills and video. Editorial clients include New Scientist Magazine, The Sunday Times, Geographical Magazine, BBC Wildlife Magazine and The Economist. He combines his interest in ecology and environmental issues with visual storytelling to explore man’s interaction with the rest of the natural world.