COAL + ICE brings together the work of more than 50 photographers from China and around the world, and traces a photographic arc from deep within coal mines to the melting glaciers of the greater Himalaya, and across the globe where rising sea levels and extreme weather events are wreaking havoc. The imagery in COAL + ICE is drawn from diverse materials, from glass plate negatives to smartphone videos, spanning more than a century. Through intimate portraits and vast altered landscapes, these photographs document the consequences triggered by our continued reliance on fossil fuels. The exhibition brings to life the environmental and human costs of climate change, while also highlighting the innovative solutions that provide hope for a more sustainable future. 

COAL + ICE is co-curated by Magnum photographer Susan Meiselas and renowned exhibition designer Jeroen de Vries, and led by Orville Schell, the Arthur Ross Director of the Center on U.S.-China Relations at the Asia Society. First developed as an exhibition for Three Shadows Photography Art Center in Beijing in 2011, it has since been shown across China, in Paris during COP21, in 2018 at the Fort Mason Center for Arts and Culture in San Francisco, and most recently at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. in Spring 2023.

In 2024, climate change will take center stage at Asia Society. A series of speaker events, performances, films, and more will take place throughout the run of the exhibition. Asia Society will join forces with a network of partner organizations across New York City’s five boroughs to concurrently present exhibitions and events, expanding the conversation to inspire deeper engagement on how the climate crisis affects our global and local communities. 

Click here to learn more about COAL + ICE, and see photos, videos and more. For more information on Asia Society's other work on climate change and the environment, click here. 

Image credit: Jimmy Chin, Central Rongbuk Glacier Mt. Everest, 2002