Hilton Asmus Contemporary Presents WILD ENCOUNTERS Review

Gallery President & Curator Arica Hilton is a very warm and welcoming host, fascinated by Yarrow´s breathtaking photography. She tells us how she contacted David Yarrow on Instagram and how, with no connection whatsoever, the same exact day her London-based contact reached out to her asking if she would be interested in Yarrow’s works. What are the odds, right?

It is such an amazing display of pure natural beauty that from the first moment you walk in this gallery you fall for the pureness of these prints. In a world where everyone has a camera at reach at all times, when there are more photographers than ever before, David Yarrow has managed to establish himself as one of the bestselling fine art photographers in the world. When David was in Chicago for a few days, it was a pleasure for this writer to meet him at the gallery and attend his presentation.

Sometimes you are lucky to have one and other times you are very lucky and get three magnificent prints in a year. Relentlessness, minimalism and relevance are key to his less is more philosophy, and at the same time he is really grateful to his team and collaborators who make it all possible.

His minimal approach is perfectly illustrated by the 78 Degrees North photography taken in Svalbard (Norway, 2017). With this particular shot, his secret is fully represented, because his passion made him push the camera button 60 times and out of this sequence, the very last one was the lucky winner. As you stand in front of this magnificent piece of art, your heart starts to beat faster and your mind cannot help fill in the blanks with untold pieces of story, with overwhelming feelings and emotions. The pureness of the whites, the distinctive central paw that draws your attention as the big polar bear walks away. The animal gives his back to the world, a world that really needs to be aware of the reality of its ever-shrinking habitat. This photography strikes as a metaphor of life.

The American Idol, another one of the prints in this exhibition is a powerful statement-making photo of a large bull bison near Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.For this shot, considering the size of this massive prehistoric animal and the danger implied by a very close personal approach—the camera had to be controlled remotely. So due to the absence of the human, it is striking to observe the natural curiosity of this rogue bull. This emblematic North American animal is captured here with all its greatness.

David Yarrow has been traveling around the world, reaching some of the most remote places on Earth in order to find these unique moments in time. The exclusivity of his photography is achieved by literally walking the extra mile and reaching places no other photographer has the privilege to experience. The Crossing is the simple image of a big herd of elephant crossing the dry lake at Ambroseli, Kenya 2017. And just like the polar bear image, it is a statement and a shout to the world regarding the fragility of the elephant population.

Laura Buciuman is currently a Marketing Assistant at the Tourist Office of Spain in Chicago. Open-minded and curious, with a major in journalism and philosophy (North University, Romania) and two Master Degrees, one in English and Spanish for specific and business purposes (Alicante University, Spain) and another in International Tourism (EOI Business School, Spain), Laura is passionate about writing, storytelling, traveling, arts and culture. She has already lived in four different countries and visited many others and enjoys discovering different cultures. Reading, gastronomy, latin dances and yoga are some of her hobbies.

Editor's Note: Click here to read more Picture this Post articles by Laura Buciuman