On Tuesday, July 7th, from 6-9 PM, The Baobab Cultural Center will open its doors to Rochester-based budding photographer, Mikey Jarrell, a senior at Allendale Columbia School. This exhibition is our second outdoor exhibition on The ArtWalk, 728 University Ave, to generate community awareness on rare human experiences in other parts of the world through imagery. Jarrell’s inaugural exhibition “The Wonders of the Pribilofs,” was inspired while on a volunteer vacation on St. George Island, Alaska, with Earthwatch Institute. The exhibition will remain on display until August 31st.

The Baobab Center is excited to feature Mikey Jarrell’s inaugural exhibition. Jarrell’s photographic essay tells the story of life in the Aleutian Islands as seen through the eyes of a teen-aged lad. The images portray nature in its pristine royalty. The deceitful simplicity of life on St. George Island and the fog-shrouded landscape conjure the sense of an unspoiled environment, nearly unaffected by human interaction. The viewer is invited to ask why the island has remained virtually uninhabited. The lack of an immediate response in the picture launches the viewer into a search for the history of the Aleutian people and the hidden stories of human suffering behind seal fur coats.

During the opening night, Mikey Jarrell will talk about his motivation for the project:

• The history of the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands and the migratory paths of the first humans into what is now the United States
• The historical connections between Russia and the Native Alaskans (fewer than 100 remain on this island)
• Nature - the birds (most notably puffins, kittywakes, and cormorants) and the Alaskan fur seals
• The declining populations of those animals and the research being conducted to try to save them
• The seal fur coat industry and the enslavement of Aleuts
• The fog-shrouded islands in the Bering Sea and the steep drops of surrounding vistas

I expected to learn about fur seals on St. George Island, and I was not disappointed; the reasons for the decline of the northern fur seal population remain a mystery and pose a critical question to be answered through continued research. Our data collection process focused on the relationship between mother seals and their pups. During down time, I had the chance to photograph the hundreds of thousands of seabirds that make St. George Island legendary to scientists and birdwatchers alike. Unexpected, though, were the tales I heard of the Aleuts—the native Alaskans who have inhabited the island since the Pribilof Islands were discovered by Russian explorers in the late 1700’s. The Russians brought a colony of Aleuts to the Pribilof Islands as slaves to harvest the unbelievable concentration of seals for their coats. The inhabitants of the islands have retained much of their unique heritage: now a blend of Russian and Aleut. Their tale is not one easily found in history textbooks, however, although the story of harsh conditions to which they were subjected, even after the U.S. government purchased the Alaskan mainland and islands, is one that should be told.

Mikey Jarrell is a senior at the Allendale Columbia School. He is an avid photographer, having developed his hobby during trips to Italy, Costa Rica, and most recently, Alaska. In 2008 Mikey spent two weeks volunteering on his first Earthwatch Expedition: The Northern Fur Seals of St. George Island, Alaska. While not assisting with data collection, Mikey learned all he could from a few experienced photographers in order to take full advantage of the almost unlimited access to incredible wildlife on St. George Island, one of four Pribilof Islands north of the Aleutians, in the Bering Sea. He plans to participate in more Earthwatch Expeditions in the future, including one to Kenya in the summer of 2009.