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A Glacier’s Requiem

Multimedia artist Julia Calfee dedicated months living underneath the Länta glacier, Switzerland, in order to experience and witness the effects of global warming on this ice giant.
She decided to photograph and record the images and sounds of the dying glacier - as it melted away before her eyes - to forever create a visual and audio archive.

The result of these months of work was hundreds of varied audio recordings and thousands of black and white photographs. The final selection of images transcends the subject, to portray in an abstract manner the elements of this constantly changing nature. Equally powerful are her audio recordings which she edited, sequenced, and presents in the form of a vinyl record, included with the book.

Throughout the book, interspersed between the photographs, are poetic contributions by renowned artists, writers and composers, inspired by the glacier’s sounds.

Beating Hearts, Radio Static, Helicopter Blades, Ticking Clocks - these are just some examples of the multitude of different sounds that the Länta glacier produced as it was melting away. Julia Calfee felt compelled to record these extraordinary sounds and forever preserve these symphonies in the form of a vinyl record, included with the book as part of the same project.

The vinyl record complements the photographs - listen and watch simultaneously in order to fully experience the delicate beauty and tragedy of this disappearing ice giant.

The recordings have not been altered in any manner, either by synthesizers or any other external technique.

A Glacier’s Requiem

An immersive audio and visual experience of a dying glacier

Kehrer Verlag, 30,5 x 31 CM, 112 Pages, 32 Black and White large format Photographs 30 x 60 cm

Last Song of a Glacier

Vinyl Record

12” Vinyl Record, 180g, 45 RPM, Stereo

Making of A Glacier's Requiem

Video