This Global Read took place on Friday, April 22, at 9am PDT
Watch a recording of the program here
MOTHER is a large-format nature photography book, showcasing Marsel van Oosten's personal favorites and his most popular and award-winning images from the past 15 years, taken on five continents: Africa, North America, Antarctica, Asia, and Europe. MOTHER is Marsel's personal visual ode to Mother Earth and a celebration of her incredible biodiversity.
Successful conservation starts with awareness, and Marsel hopes that the images in this book will reconnect people to nature, make them realize that Mother Earth desperately needs our protection, and inspire them to take action.
While MOTHER is primarily a large coffee-table-style photo book that aims to awe and inspire you, it is also a wake-up call. Marsel writes extensively about the various threats our planet is facing to show the situation is much more serious than people think. We need to do more about conservation, and we need to up our game fast before it's too late. The latest IUCN Red List confirms Marsel's alarmist views. The animals and wild places in MOTHER are what we stand to lose if we don't act now.
Editions
There are currently three editions, with more to come. The international edition is bi-lingual (English/German), there is a Dutch edition, and there is The Collectors' Edition (limited to 100 copies) which will be in English only.
Images
The international edition of MOTHER features 320 pages with 170 large format images — Marsel's personal favorites, his most popular shots, as well as most of his many award-winners. The pandemic gave Marsel extra time to process images that have never been published before, so there's exciting new material in there as well.
Foreword
The beautiful foreword for MOTHER is written by world-famous evolutionary biologist Bret Weinstein from the United States. His interview on the Joe Rogan podcast got over 7 million views on YouTube within a week. Marsel has described him as "a voice of reason in times of mass hysteria". Weinstein is also a member of 'the intellectual dark web' and an avid photographer himself.
5 Continents, 5 Chapters
The book is divided into 5 chapters — one for each continent. Each chapter opens with an introduction text written by Marsel.
About the Author Marsel van Oosten
Marsel is a professional nature photographer from The Netherlands, with a background in advertising and graphic design.
Marsel is a nature lover with a deep concern for the natural world. Successful conservation starts with awareness, and he hopes that his images will make people aware that Mother Earth needs our protection and inspire them to take action. In his work, he tries to simplify, to get rid of the extraneous: Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
His images have won many awards around the globe, and he is the world’s only photographer to have won the Grand Slam: the grand titles Wildlife Photographer of the Year, International Nature Photographer of the Year, and Travel Photographer of the Year.
About the Host Dr. Jon Kolkin
He has a unique background which includes physician/surgeon in private practice x30 years, international medical volunteer x20 years, Integrative Medicine Health Coach, award-winning photographer and author, and lead organizer of numerous compassion-centered initiatives in collaboration with representatives of the Dalai Lama and others. Examples include the North American Summit, Fostering Compassion Through Museums, that was held in India and honored by a private audience with Dalai Lama, the Shades of Compassion traveling museum exhibition, the documentary film, Man of Compassion: Stories about the Dalai Lama, that included participation by 3 US presidents, and the Shades of Compassion Foundation.
He is also an accomplished athlete and musician who has been married for over 40 years, and is blessed with a loving wife and family. This rare combination of experiences provide him with a unique perspective on practical strategies for living a more balanced, compassionate life, while simultaneously maintaining one’s physical and emotional health.
As a photographer, Dr. Kolkin has a worldwide following with over 20 exhibitions in museums and art galleries throughout the US and abroad. His ongoing project, Inner Harmony, has received 20 international photography awards and was featured twice in the prestigious LensWork Magazine. Meanwhile, his book, INNER HARMONY: Living in Balance, has been honored with two international awards. He has taught photography at Maine Media Workshops and has participated in hundreds of presentations, panel discussions, and interviews to a wide range of audiences on topics related to compassion, life balance, photography and spirituality. He does not accept honorariums but instead welcomes donations to the Shades of Compassion Foundation.
