David Zimmerman

Career

David Zimmerman was born in 1955 in Milwaukee, United States. He works pri­mar­ily in Taos, New Mexico, and in Jogiwara Village in north­ern India. 

Visual Style

A grad­u­ate of the Brooks Institute in Santa Barbara, California, he moved to New York in 1982 with his wife and new­born child, where he became the assis­tant to lead­ing press and adver­tis­ing photographers.

Major Series and Works

Beginning his inde­pen­dent career in 1985, he ini­tially focused on envi­ron­men­tally related projects while also work­ing on adver­tis­ing cam­paigns for major brands (Pepsi, Mercedes-​Benz, American Express, Unilever, among others).

Recognition

Over the past three decades, sev­eral of his series — includ­ing Desert, Last Refuge, and more recently One Voice—have focused on land­scapes and cul­tures threat­ened by envi­ron­men­tal, social, eco­nomic, and polit­i­cal forces. These works have been exhib­ited worldwide. 

Reading the Work

David Zimmerman’s work finds its bal­ance in pho­tog­ra­phy that is atten­tive to human traces, nat­ural mate­ri­als, and frag­ile land­scapes. It is dis­tin­guished by a doc­u­men­tary and for­mal approach that brings depth to envi­ron­men­tal sub­jects and pho­tographed ter­ri­to­ries. Viewing his images rewards close atten­tion to nuance: a com­po­si­tional detail, a way of main­tain­ing dis­tance from the sub­ject, a qual­ity of light, or a tex­ture often reveals their deeper meaning.