A leading figure on the art scene, Andreas Gursky is renowned for his monumental digitally edited photos depicting the globalisation of society, and its geopolitical, technological, and ecological challenges. Thirty years ago, he focused his lens on Switzerland’s Aletsch Glacier. An immense 23 km long, and over 4000 m at its highest elevation, the largest glacier in the Alps is one of the natural monuments of Swiss national heritage. It is a focal point for scientific research and emblematic of the problem of glacial melting. The German photographer Andreas Gursky took this photo with an analogue camera, in situ in 1993. Inspired by Romantic paintings, his Aletsch Glacier depicts a majestic landscape stretching as far as the eye can see, under a stormy sky. The photographer toyed with the limits of his medium, transcending the ordinary to bear witness to the passage of time and humans’ impact on nature. Andreas Gursky created a breathtaking picture that, thirty years on, remains as relevant as ever. It has become an icon of the global issue of climate change.

As part of the Aletsch Glacier installation, presented at the Biennale Images Vevey, Andreas Gursky had the idea of returning to the Aletsch glacier. On 8 August 2024, he took another photo of this beautiful setting thirty-one years after his first photograph. The artist intentionally chose the same viewpoint and used a digital camera to create an image made up using his usual techniques. Entitled Aletsch Glacier II, 2024, this previously unseen work features the iconic photograph, revealing the evolution of this ancient glacier.

Andreas Gursky (1955) pioneered digital editing of photographs in the early 1990s and was one of the first artists to apply it to large format. Born into a family of photographers, he studied at the Folkwang Universität der Künste in Essen and then at the Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf. Alongside Candida Höfer and Thomas Struth, he is among the generation that became known as the ‘Düsseldorf Photographers’ trained by Bernd and Hilla Becher. His images are among the most highly regarded in the art world and are exhibited in renowned institutions.

Original scenography by Images Vevey and the artist
Curation: Stefano Stoll & Images Vevey
Installation presented in the context of the partnership between Images Vevey and Art for Glaciers, in parallel with the collective exhibition Watching the Glacier Disappear, across Switzerland from 29 June to 29 September 2024.

Aletsch Glacier, 1993 © Andreas Gursky / VG Bild-Kunst. Courtesy Sprüth Magers