Our Time on Earth

More about the book

Wide-ranging and operatic in scale, Tom Young's fourth book offers an intuitive exploration of the mystery, promise, and condition of human life on Earth in 2020. Featuring eighty-three new photographs artfully sequenced into thematic parts, this collection presents a visual narrative that hints at the apocalyptic nature of contemporary life while fostering hope for a better world. Young takes readers on an epic journey through images that range from a molded snow globe to a roiling ocean and the haunting steam from a nuclear power plant. Within this universe, one encounters the serene presence of a goat at peace in a freshly dug grave, young people amidst the power of water, and the striking beauty of moving water frozen in stillness. Disturbing elements of the human experience are also depicted, such as an abandoned school bus in a mined landscape and a collapsing building shaped like a large cat. Juxtaposition tells a story, while the precise rendering of moments speaks to the mystery of creation and the photographer's devotion to understanding a complicated world. As curator Aprile Gallant notes, the images transition from macro to micro, revealing the deep interconnectedness of humans and their environment, a drama unfolding in both beneficial and devastating ways.