Exhibition explores '˜planet under attack'

Joyce Ferder Rankin’s collection, Degrees, will be launched at a special viewing and drinks reception on Saturday from 12-4pm. The exhibition runs until April 29.

Joyce’s images capture the remarkable beauty of our natural world and the struggle animals face as a consequence of climate change.

She says: “Travelling from the High Arctic to China to Antarctica and back I realised that conflict was far more reaching than ever before.

“The inhuman acts were being directed against the planet.

“Over the last three years, my travels have taken me from latitude 67ºS (Antarctica) to 85ºN (Arctic Circle).

“I wanted to go to those places where people seldom travel but where by degrees, our impact on this remote and beautiful wilderness has left a deep and lasting impression.

I hope my photographs of the beauty in these precarious polar areas will leave a positive impression on you. We need to work together to save what is left of our beautiful blue planet and ultimately ourselves.”Joyce was born and raised in Philadelphia and began her career there in 1976 at the age of 17 at a local television station.

She went on to become an award-winning journalist working for many of the world’s top broadcasters including BBC, CBS, ITN , Channel 4 News and RTE.

Her assignments included the Falklands War, the Persian Gulf War and the Bosnian War.

She was also one of the few women at the time, to work as a cameraperson and video editor covering the world’s hotspots.

She moved to Portballintrae in 1999 and most recently, has been traveling to Antarctica and the Arctic documenting the effects of climate change on wildlife

Her photographs have been published in National Geographic and other publications worldwide. She was recently awarded a distinction by the Royal Photographic Society. During the exhibition, Joyce’s photographs will be available to buy.

Flowerfield’s gallery opening hours are: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm; Saturday, 12 noon to 1pm.