Episode
Mitch Epstein on Environmental Photography, Activism, and His Career - Episode 109
- Published
- May 1, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3101
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://photowork.foundation/mitch-epstein/s
Actions
POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/photowork-with-sasha-wolf-photography-podcast-403436/episodes/mitch-epstein-on-environmental-photography-activism-and-his-career-episode-109/transcription-requests
Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/photowork-with-sasha-wolf-photography-podcast-403436/mitch-epstein-on-environmental-photography-activism-and-his-career-episode-109.md
Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.
Summary
Photographer, director, and producer Mitch Epstein joins PhotoWork with Sasha Wolf to discuss his storied career in photography, environmental activism, and artistic influences. From early inspiration by Garry Winogrand to guidance from John Szarkowski, Epstein reflects on how he evolved into a research-driven, project-based photographer focused on environmental issues. He also discusses his work in film as a production designer and co-producer on Mississippi Masala (1991) and Salaam Bombay! (1988), and shares insights on privilege, longevity, and sustaining a life in photography. https://www.mitchepstein.net Mitch Epstein has photographed the landscape and culture of America for half a century. A graduate of Cooper Union, he became a pioneer of 1970s fine-art color photography. Epstein has been inducted into the National Academy of Design (2020) and was awarded the Prix Pictet (2011), Berlin Prize (2008), and a Guggenheim Fellowship (2002). His work has been shown and collected by museums worldwide, including New York’s Museum of Modern Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Whitney Museum of American Art, the National Gallery in Washington DC, The Art Institute of Chicago, Tate Modern in London, Museum of Modern Art in Paris, Los Angeles’s Getty Museum and LACMA, the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, TX, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Recent exhibitions include “American Nature” (photographs and multi-media installations) at the Gallerie d’Italia museum in Torino, Italy (2024-25); “In India,” (photographs and films) at Les Rencontres d'Arles in the Abbey of Montmajour, Arles, France (2022); and “Property Rights” at The Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, Texas (2020-21). Epstein's seventeen books, mostly published by Steidl Verlag, include Re…