The Annenberg Foundation hosted the North American premiere of Amazonia: Photography by Sebatiao Salgado at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. The Annenberg family foundation provides funding and support to nonprofit organizations throughout the United States and globally.

Wallis Annenberg – Photo by Jill Weinlein

Wallis Annenberg attended the event and walked up to the podium to talk about how she met Brazilian photojournalist Sebastiao Salgado. He told her “Good Shoes are very important for a photographer, as well as have a good camera.” Suffice it to say, Sebastiao is a humble man, and has probably worn out a few pairs of those shoes to get these photos,” said Annenberg. “Great photographers do so much more than capture an image or even a moment, they capture a feeling, they stir an emotion, they chronicle the human condition itself in all of its beauty, absurdity, frailty and resilience, but that measure there may be no greater photographer that Sebastiao Salgado.”

Photographer Sebastiao Salgado and his wife Lelia Wanick Salgado. Photo by Jill Weinlein

Annenberg went on to share that when she first saw his astonishing work of Amazonia, she was awed and overwhelmed and deeply moved to action. It was a no-brainer for this philanthropist to do all that she could to bring this ground-breaking show to Los Angeles. She wanted to help make it widely accessible so that everyone could see it for themselves. “As may of you know, there is a direct link between the health of the Amazon and the health of our planet. The rainforest helps stabilize our global climate. Those rainforests as well as the indigenous people who live within them, are increasingly under assault,” said Annenberg.

Photo Sebastiao Salgado

To see Sabastiao’s work is to go far beyond the statistics to the staggering beauty of this shrinking preserve, to the grit and grace of the people under that hardest circumstances and the twin ravages of climate change and re-forestation which hurt more than the amazon itself, but the whole planet. This is a stain on our collective conscious. His outstanding art teaches viewers about the fragility of our lives and the planet we share.

Salgado said to Annenberg when they met “My camera allowed nature to speak to me, now it is up to all of us to listen.”

Lilakoi Moon (Formely Lisa Bonet) views Amazônia: Photography by Sebastião Salgado at the California Science Center. Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images

Talent such as Lilakoi Moon (also known as Lisa Bonet) arrived to this event to admire Amazonia. Salgado’s breathtaking black-and-white photographs draw viewers into the planet’s largest rainforest and its hidden worlds.

Actress Melora Hardin. Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images

Actors Bill Pullman, Malora Hardin, Wagner Moura, and Ed Begley Jr, as well as Jeannie Buss the owner and President of the Los Angeles Lakers supported the new exhibit during the VIP evening. They viewed more than 200 photographs of indigenous peoples, mountains, weather, rivers and landscapes of the Amazonia.

Admission is free to the public. This special exhibition runs through February, 2023. It does contain some photography that depicts nudity and scenes of animal hunting.

Actor Bill Pullman Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images

Visitors can enhance their experience seeing Amazon Adventure 3D, an immersive IMAX movie that transports viewers to the lush Amazon rainforest to meet some of the region’s captivating animals on our 7-story screen. Discover stunning portraits of the Amazon’s indigenous leaders and communities, dramatic landscapes taken from intrepid riverboat expeditions, and sweeping aerial shots of immense waterfalls and stormy skies.