In Conversation with Edward Burtynsky and John O'Brian

Thursday, May 28th

Doors open at 6:30 PM | Talk begins at 7:30 PM

258 East 1st Ave, Second Floor

Vancouver, BC V5T 1A6

We warmly welcome you to join us for a very special evening with Edward Burtynsky in conversation with John O’Brian.

The conversation will centre on Burtynsky’s profound investigation of the human-altered landscape, considering how his photographs hold beauty and unease in the same frame, and how they invite us to confront the industrial, environmental, and historical forces that have shaped the contemporary world.

John O'Brian is an art historian, writer, and curator. He is best known for his books on modern art, including Ruthless Hedonism, David Milne and the Modern Tradition of Painting, and Clement Greenberg: The Collected Essays and Criticism, a New York Times “Notable Book of the Year,” and for his work on nuclear photography. He has organized exhibitions on atomic threat in Copenhagen, London, Toronto, and Vancouver. Camera Atomica, curated for the Art Gallery of Ontario in 2015, was the first comprehensive exhibition on nuclear photography.

From 1987 to 2017, O’Brian taught art history at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver. He has also taught at York University, Toronto, Harvard University, Cambridge, and Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto. In addition, he has lectured across North America and in Europe, Australia, China, India, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Palestine, and South Africa.

He is the recipient of an honorary doctorate from Trinity College, University of Toronto, and the Thakore Award in Human Rights and Peace Studies from Simon Fraser University. He received a lifetime achievement award for his work in the visual arts in 2020 and was awarded a Royal Canadian Academy of Arts Medal in 2024.