Earth from above - Softcover

Yann Arthus Bertrand

Softcover

ISBN 10: 2910767035 ISBN 13: 9782910767037

Publisher: Zagier & Urruty Pubns, 2011

Synopsis

The Earth s best-kept secrets can only be seen from above. Through 170 images taken by remarkable photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand for ten years in different geographies of more than 60 countries, we get a privileged perspective that discloses a planet as never seen before. Based on a project sponsored by UNESCO and other distinguished international institutions, this original photography record in book format becomes an indispensable document for the visual memory that promotes carefulness for our planet in order to enjoy it and transmit its beauty and richness to future generations. With more than 2.5 million copies sold all over the world, Yann Arthus-Bertrand s Earth from Above moves us and renews our connection with the blue planet: natural layouts and man-made structures become, from above, works of art that give rise to a renewed love for our big house .

About this title

Review

Ecology, a science scarcely a century old, aims to give its practitioners an approach to understanding how whole natural systems--for example, watersheds, deserts, and estuaries--work. Few books translate this aim as well as Earth from Above, a stunning collection of photographs that affords its viewers a window into the world's workings. It is something of a commonplace, for instance, that the large-scale logging now being visited on the world's rainforests is causing untold damage to tropical ecosystems. In French photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand's hands, this problem is translated from arid fact to alarming image, giving immediate meaning to the statistics that underlie today's environmental headlines; his photographs of the ruins of rural Madagascar, where forests are being cleared at a rate of 1,500 square kilometers (580 square miles) annually, are a sad case in point.

Arthus-Bertrand, working with the support of UNESCO, has wandered the globe to gather this collection of more than 200 photographs, presented in a folio format. The images are uniformly striking, whether of stalagmite-like fans of algae spreading into the Mediterranean Sea, farmers working their fields in northern India, or destroyed Iraqi tanks littering the deserts of Kuwait. The accompanying text, captions, and short essays by some of France's leading scientists and social critics lend specific depth to the images, which will cheer few readers--but that will shock, and educate, and, with luck, inspire closer attention to the world around us. --Gregory McNamee

From the Publisher

The result of a five-year airborne odyssey across five continents and 60 countries, Earth from Above is the most revealing and spectacular portrait of our world ever created. From a heart-shaped mangrove forest in New Caledonia to a flock of red ibises in Venezuela, from a caravan of camels in Mauritania to Mt. Everest and Mammoth Hot Springs, re nowned aerial photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand presents nearly 200 striking color images that put our home planet in a whole new perspective. Produced under the sponsorship of UNESCO, the book is also a unique documentary record of the earth's fragile ecosystems at the dawn of the new millennium. Commentaries by noted specialists illuminate what we see-and explain exactly what we stand to lose as demographic pressures put more stress on the environment. 170 photographs in full color, 416 pages, 1011/2 x 14 33/8" Advertising: New York Times Book Review Yann Arthus-Bertrand is the author of more than 40 books, including Abrams' New York from the Air, Greece from the Air, and Good Breeding (see page 17). Sophie Bessis is a historian and economist; Paul Blanquart is a philosopher and sociologist; Jean-Paul Delage Is a physician and historian of science; Pierre Gentelle is a geographer and archaeologist; Jacques Vron is a demographer; Astrid Avundo is a naturalist; and Frdric Marchand is an ethnologist and anthropologist.

About this edition

• Publisher: Zagier & Urruty Pubns
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 2910767035
• ISBN 13: 9782910767037
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 208
• Editor: Ediciones Lariviere