Into the Quiet and the Light: Water, Life and Land Loss in South Louisiana

Local photographer Virginia Hanusik will be at The Garden District Book Shop on June 11 for a celebratory evening honoring the release of her book Into the Quiet and the Light: Water, Life, and Land Loss in South Louisiana 

In South Louisiana, where the Mississippi River meets the Gulf of Mexico, water—and the history of controlling it—is omnipresent.glimpses the vulnerabilities and possibilities of living on the water during an ongoing climate catastrophe and the fallout of the fossil fuel industry—past, present, and future. 

Into the Quiet and the Light sustains our physical, mental, and emotional connections to these landscapes through a collection of photographs by Virginia Hanusik. Framing the architecture and infrastructure of South Louisiana with both distance and intimacy, introspection and expansiveness, this work engages new memories, microhistories, anecdotes, and insights from scholars, artists, activists, and practitioners working in the region. 

Unfolding alongside and in dialogue with Hanusik’s photographs, these reflections soberly and hopefully populate images of South Louisiana’s built and natural environments, opening up multiple pathways that defy singularity and complicate the disaster-oriented imagery often associated with the region and its people. In staging these meditations on water, life, and land loss, this book invites readers to join both Hanusik and the contributors in reading multiplicity into South Louisiana’s water-ruled landscapes.

The evening will begin at 6:00 PM. Hanusik will  moderate a panel discussion featuring Jessica Dandridge, Mike Dardar, and Nathaniel Rich. Afterwards, she will be available to personalize copies of her book. 

Entry to the event is free and open to the public but the shop encourages interested parties to RSVP to ensure entry and reserve a copy of the book on Eventbrite as space is limited. Additional copies will be available to purchase. 

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

The Garden District Book Shop, 2727 Prytania Street, New Orleans, United States