Pre(Occupied) Landscapes aims to challenge conventional representations of the landscape in photography. Rather than treating landscapes as passive backdrops, this workshop explores them as active, layered sites where natural systems, social histories, and political forces intersect. Through lectures, discussions, a guided field exercise, and peer critiques, participants will engage with the landscape not just as a visual subject, but as a living archive of occupation, transformation, and resistance.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this workshop, participants will:
-- Understand the landscape as a construct shaped by human narratives and power structures.
-- Critically engage with photographic strategies for documenting place.
-- Develop field-based visual inquiries rooted in observation, listening, and responsiveness.
-- Reflect on their own practice in relation to landscape, power, and presence.
-- Produce new work and receive constructive critique in a peer-supported environment.
Required Preparation
Before the workshop, please:
-- Read Deborah Bright's essay Of Mother Nature and Marlboro Men.
-- Prepare a 5-minute presentation on your practice.
-- Bring a digital camera (for ease of review and discussion).
Bring your laptop and card reader on Day 2 for image transfer and critique.
© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev© Alexey Yurenev
Workshop Details
Dates: Two sessions on Saturday and Sunday: April 25 and 26, 2026
Time: 10:00 AM-5:00 PM EST (with a 1-hour lunch break)
Format: In-Person in New York City, NY
Participants: Limited to 12
Course Fee: $315 (members) / $365 (non-members).Register Early & Save! Sign up by March 15, 2026, to receive 10% off with our Early Bird Discount. Add the coupon code SPRING2026 at checkout to receive a discount.
Level: Open to All!
About the Instructor
Alexey Yurenev is an artist, visual researcher, and educator whose work explores the intersections of memory, technology, and production of knowledge. He is an adjunct associate professor in the visual arts MFA Program at Columbia University and a faculty member at the International Center of Photography (ICP).
His work has been exhibited internationally at venues including FOAM (Amsterdam), Palazzo Poggi Museum (Bologna), Hangar (Brussels), MOMus Modern/Costakis Collection (Thessaloniki), and Rencontres d'Arles. He is the author of the book Seeing Against Seeing (2025).
Yurenev's projects have been featured in The New York Times, National Geographic, Literary Hub, and Topic. His work is held in collections such as Johns Hopkins University Special Collections, FOAM Museum, and the Anti-Krieg Museum. He has been recognized by Photographer of the Year International and received the Silurian Society Award for excellence in arts and culture journalism. He has also been nominated for an Emmy Award and the FOAM Paul Huf Award.
Yurenev is currently enrolled in Fulbright specialist program and is on the advisory board of Art Works Projects. He is the co-founder of FOTODEMIC, an online platform for innovative visual strategies, and the founder and executive producer of Living Room, a monthly public program for ICP alumni.