Utah’s Great Salt Lake, once a vital ecosystem, is shrinking at an alarming rate. Since the mid-19th century, the lake has lost 73% of its water and 60% of its surface area, largely due to excessive water diversion. Once essential for sustaining rainfall patterns and providing a refuge for millions of migratory birds, the lake is now on the brink of collapse, raising fears it could disappear altogether.
Chilean artist Alfredo Jaar has captured this ecological disaster in a haunting photography series that documents shallow waters, exposed lakebed, and the toxic dust left behind. He describes the project as “a lament for our dying planet.” The collection, titled The End, has earned Jaar the prestigious Prix Pictet, an international award recognizing photography that engages with global sustainability issues.
Now in its 11th edition, the Prix Pictet focuses on a different theme each year. The 2025 competition centered on “Storm,” highlighting both the literal and metaphorical turbulence of our times. Jaar, selected as the winner from twelve finalists, received 100,000 Swiss Francs (approximately $124,000) for his work.
Michael Benson, director of the Prix Pictet, told CNN that the chosen theme resonates deeply in today’s world. “Storms have become a common feature in many people’s lives,” he explained. “It is the dramatic expression of nature’s wild side which is dramatically amplified by the disappearance of native species, the alarming loss of Arctic ice, and the increasing frequency of wildfires.” He added that storm imagery also captures the unease of our era, where society lives in constant anticipation of new disasters.
Photographers interpreted the theme in varied ways. Some took a literal approach, depicting extreme weather phenomena and their lasting consequences. Italian photographer Marina Caneve revisited the Dolomites in northern Italy, devastated by floods and landslides in 1966, to reflect on the inevitability of future catastrophes in a changing climate. U.S.-born Camille Seaman focused on supercell thunderstorms,towering, rotating systems capable of unleashing giant hail and tornadoes,underscoring the growing intensity of extreme weather events.
Others approached “Storm” metaphorically, exploring political upheaval and social unrest. Hungarian photographer Balazs Gardi chronicled the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, a visual record of deep political division and collective turmoil. Benson noted that such images highlight how sustainability crises extend beyond the environment, triggering human displacement, migration, and ultimately, social discord. “As people are forced from their homes by rising water levels or intense heat, migration increases, which in turn gives rise to division and unrest with which we are all too familiar,” he said.
Though many shortlisted projects depict devastation and instability, organizers emphasized that the images also carry the potential to inspire action. “We have become increasingly numb to the problems caused by the global climate crisis,” Benson warned. “These images cut through that numbness, move the debate beyond language, and convey the urgent need for action.”
