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Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art acknowledges it resides on the ancestral territory of the Osage, Kaw, and Otoe-Missouria, among other tribal nations forcibly moved to the region such as the Shawnee, Wyandot, Delaware, Potawatomi, Sac and Fox and Kiikaapoi (Kickapoo) nations. We recognize and support the continued vibrancy of Native communities and cultures today who continue to thrive, as well as the inherent sovereignty of tribal nations. We are compelled to serve and advocate for these communities in accordance with our public mission.

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Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art presents the exhibition "Second Nature: Photography in the Age of the Anthropocene" on view May 22 through September 13, 2026.

Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art Presenting Exhibition "Second Nature: Photography in the Age of the Anthropocene"

Kansas City, MO – Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art presents the exhibition Second Nature: Photography in the Age of the Anthropocene, on view May 22 through September 13, 2026. It is the first major exhibition to examine the Anthropocene through the lens of contemporary photography, comprised of some 40 photo-based artists working in a variety of artistic methods from studios and sites across the globe.  

Just over 20 years ago, scientists introduced the term the “Anthropocene” to denote a new geological epoch in which human activity has had a marked impact on the global climate. Since that time, the concept of the Anthropocene has been disseminated to a wider public audience through expanding environmental studies and scholarship, increasing coverage in the popular press, widespread and fervent activism, and a variety of artistic responses. The exhibition explores the complexities of this proposed new age. 

Collectively, these artists offer compelling visual imagery necessary for picturing the Anthropocene: aerial views of beautiful but toxic sites, collages that incorporate archival photographs to counter colonial narratives, depictions of urbanism on an unimaginable scale, and imagined yet precarious futures. In doing so, they address urgent issues such as vanishing ice, rising waters, and increasing resource extraction, as well as the deeply rooted and painful legacies of colonialism, forced climate migration, and socio-environmental trauma.

Since its emergence, the term “Anthropocene” has entered the common lexicon and has been adopted by disciplines outside of the sciences including philosophy, economics, sociology, geography, and anthropology, effectively linking the Anthropocene to nearly every aspect of post-industrial life. Organized around four thematic sections, “Reconfiguring Nature,” “Toxic Sublime,” “Inhumane Geographies,” and “Envisioning Tomorrow,” the exhibition proposes that the Anthropocene is not one singular narrative, but rather a diverse and complex web of relationships between and among humanity, industry, and ecology—the depths and effects of which are continually being discovered. 

Explains Jessica May, Executive Director of Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art and co-curator of the exhibition, "Second Nature arrives at the Kemper Museum as our city prepares to host a truly global event, the World Cup, with its attendant visitors and a shared dialogue about what globalism really means at this complicated moment. The exhibition allows us to see a changing world through the perspective of artists from all over the world." 


The exhibition is organized by the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina and the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum, The Trustees of Reservations, Lincoln, Massachusetts. The exhibition is curated by Jessica May, Executive Director, Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, and Marshall N. Price, Chief Curator and Nancy A. Nasher and David J. Haemisegger Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University. A traveling exhibition, Second Nature has been shown at the Nasher Museum (August 2024 – January 2025), Cantor Arts Center at Stanford (February – August 2025), and the Anchorage Museum (October 2025 – April 2026). 

Sammy Baloji (born in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo), Adrián Balseca (born in Quito, Ecuador), Matthew Brandt (born in Los Angeles, CA), Edward Burtynsky (born in St. Catharines, Canada), María Magdalena Campos-Pons (born in La Vega, Matanzas, Cuba), James Casebere (born in Lansing, MI), João Castilho (born in Belo Horizonte, Brazil), Elena Damiani (born in Lima, Peru), Gohar Dashti (born in Ahvaz, Iran), Sanne de Wilde (born in Antwerp, Belgium), Andrew Esiebo (born in Lagos, Nigeria), Gauri Gill (born in Chandigarh, India), Noémie Goudal (born in Paris, France), Todd Gray (born in Los Angeles, CA), Acacia Johnson (born in Anchorage, AK), Mouna Karray (born in Sfax, Tunisia), Robert Kautuk (born in Iqaluit, Nunavut), Zhang Kechun (born in Bazhong, Sichuan Province, China), Rosemary Laing (born in Brisbane, Australia), Sze Tsung Nicolás Leong (born in Mexico City, Mexico), Anna Líndal (born in Hvammstangi, Iceland), Inka Lindergård (born in Saltvik, Finland) and Niclas Lindergård (born in Sandviken, Sweden), Pablo López Luz (born in Mexico City, Mexico), Dhruv Malhotra (born in Jaipur, India), Laura McPhee (born in New York, NY), Gideon Mendel (born in Johannesburg, South Africa), Hayley Millar Baker (Gunditjmara and Djabwurrung, born in Melbourne, Australia), Joiri Minaya (born in New York, NY), Richard Mosse (born in Kilkenny, Ireland), Aïda Muluneh (born in Addis Ababa Ethiopia), Léonard Pongo (born in Liège, Belgium), Meghann Riepenhoff (born in Atlanta, GA), Cara Romero (Chemehuevi, born in Inglewood, CA), Anastasia Samoylova (born in Moscow, Russia), Camille Seaman (Shinnecock, Born in Huntington, NY), David Benjamin Sherry (born in Stony Brook, NY), Toshio Shibata (born in Tokyo, Japan), Sim Chi Yin (born in Singapore), Thomas Struth (born in Geldern, Germany), Danila Tkachenko (born Moscow, Russia), Rajesh Vangad (born in Dahanu, India), Letha Wilson (born in Honolulu, HI), Will Wilson (Diné/Navajo, born in San Francisco, CA), Yang Yongliang (born in Shanghai, China).  


Media inquiries: Allison King, aking@kemperart.org and Meg Blackburn, meg@blackburncreative.com  

See all of the artist bios on the Nasher Museum’s website here:

Friday, May 22 | 8:30 a.m. | Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art (4420 Warwick Blvd, Kansas City, MO)

Coffee and pastries will be provided. Please RSVP to communications@kemperart.org by May 21.

An exhibition catalogue of the same name, Second Nature: Photography in the Age of the Anthropocene, was published by Rizzoli in March 2024, and is widely available. The publication is edited by Jessica May and Marshall N. Price. More information:

The J. Scott Francis, Francis Family Foundation, Richard J. Stern Foundation for the Arts, Commerce Bank, n.a., trustee; the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. 

Bold. Inclusive. Contemporary. Since 1994, Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art has been a creative force in Kansas City and beyond, championing today’s artists and sparking conversations that matter. As Missouri’s first contemporary art museum, Kemper has introduced generations of visitors to the most compelling global voices in modern and contemporary art. Admission is free, thanks to the generosity of supporting members. 

Home to a growing collection of nearly 1,500 works, the museum showcases both established and rising artists, with a strong emphasis on those from historically underrepresented communities. Housed in an iconic building designed by Gunnar Birkerts, Kemper Museum offers an ever-changing mix of exhibitions, installations, and bold new projects, presenting 8 to 10 major shows each year and a robust schedule of events. Its restaurant, Oil on Linen, features an art-inspired menu by Chef Ted Habiger, who is known for his commitment to local farmers and sustainable practices.

Kemper is more than a place to see art. It’s a place to engage. From hands-on family activities and artist talks to community partnerships and thought-provoking exhibitions, the museum’s free public programs invite people of all ages and backgrounds to connect, create, and be inspired. 

Kemper Museum is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. For more information about the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, please visit kemperart.org.

Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art Presents the Exhibition Second Nature: Photography in the Age of the Anthropocene
On View May 22 – September 13, 2026