The Eretz Israel Museum in Tel Aviv will open Local Nature, Global Nature on Wednesday, featuring two complementary nature photography exhibitions: Picture of Nature and the international exhibition Wildlife Photographer of the Year from the Natural History Museum in London.
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Curated by Guy Raz, the exhibitions are presented side by side, providing a comprehensive snapshot of the natural world and its future. This marks the sixth time that these two exhibitions are showcased together at the museum.
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An avocet lands in a winter puddle, during a chilly, overcast morning, against the backdrop of the sunrise on HaCarmel Beach
(Photo: Yosi Hen)
The Picture of Nature Exhibition, organized by the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel Aviv in collaboration with the Nature Photographers Association, showcases images from the natural world of Israel, including wildlife, plant life, and ecological systems in our region.
The exhibition's panel, composed of professional nature photography experts, anonymously selected the winning photographs through a judging process. The winners of the local photography competition categories will be announced at the opening ceremony on June 20. Nature photographers from Israel and around the world will present selected photographs, video works, and more in these exhibitions.
This year, over 4,000 photographs were submitted to the competition, captured by 410 photographers, from which 45 participants were chosen to display 60 photographs and four video works in the following categories: Birds, Mammals, Humans and Nature, Abstract in Nature, Invertebrates, Reptiles and Amphibians, the Submarine World, Landscape Photography, Documentary and Youth Photographers.
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A Balkan terrapin and a Northern banded groundling firefly
(Photo: Tzahi Finkelstein)
Among the featured photographs, there is an image of a turtle and a firefly captured by Tzahi Finkelstein in the Jezreel Valley. This particular photograph received extensive coverage in the past year. In the description of the image, it was written that it captures a "unique moment between two very different creatures: a Balkan terrapin and a Northern banded groundling firefly, perched on its nose. In this case, the firefly saw the turtle's nose, elevated and protruding from the water, as a suitable landing spot, and it appears that the ‘smiling’ turtle was surprised by its unexpected guest."
Another photo to be displayed at the exhibition, which has already won third place in the global Ocean Art competition, depicts a coral spawning event and was captured in Eilat. "Catching coral spawning is tricky business as it usually happens only once a year in a certain month of the year, on a specific night of the month, and at a certain hour of the night for a very short time window of only a few minutes.
Usually, at the exact same time, thousands of corals of a given species along hundreds of kilometers of the reef reproduce by spawning egg-and-sperm bundles altogether into the open sea. These bundles will be carried away by the currents, mixing in the water, until they finally encounter a match—a sperm will fertilize an egg and new life will be created.”
The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition is a prestigious photography competition initiated by the Natural History Museum in London. It is considered the largest and most esteemed nature photography exhibition of its kind worldwide. Serving as a platform to showcase the top-ranking photographs from the competition, the exhibition travels across the globe, captivating millions of visitors.
Additional photographs from the Israeli Nature exhibition
Photographs from the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition
