I need your help to raise $65,000 by August 31 to create the premier photography exhibition of ATACAMA at the Houston Museum of Natural Science.


Each time you unlock your smartphone, drive your car, or turn on a light, you tap into the remote landscapes of the Atacama Desert, where copper and lithium are extracted to power our modern lives.

I’m Jamey Stillings, an artist dedicated to exploring the intersection of art, the environment, and our evolving relationship with the planet. For fifteen years, I’ve been working on a multi-chapter project titled "Changing Perspectives: Renewable Energy and the Shifting Human Landscape," using aerial photography to reveal how human innovation and intervention shape the Earth.

ATACAMA: Renewable Energy and Mining in the High Desert of Chile is my most ambitious chapter to date. Between 2017 and 2022, I flew over the Atacama Desert to capture its paradox: vast solar and wind farms powering mines that extract minerals vital for renewable energy and consumer technology. Chile provides a third of the world’s copper and ranks second in lithium production; however, this advancement comes with complex environmental implications. While renewable energy reduces the carbon footprint of mining, the surging demand for these minerals, driven by our technology-dependent lifestyles, challenges us to reconsider the meaning of sustainability.

I have a tremendous opportunity to create the premier exhibition of ATACAMA: Renewable Energy and Mining in the High Desert of Chile at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, one of the nation’s premier science museums, from February through September 2026. The exhibition will coincide with the 40th anniversary of FotoFest, Houston’s renowned photography biennial, and will showcase 35 large-format dye-sublimation metal prints, along with educational materials regarding mining, renewable energy, and our global reliance on copper and lithium to engage diverse audiences.

I need your help to raise $65,000 by August 31 to cover the exhibition’s printing and production costs. Your contribution will help create a world-class experience that sparks conversation, inspires learning, and connects people to the urgent issues shaping our future. Your support will raise awareness about the vital connections between technology, resource extraction, climate change, and environmental stewardship.

Together, we can turn art into a catalyst for change. Please help me make this exhibition a reality. Every contribution, large or small, helps illuminate the urgent choices shaping our world. Thank you!

Acknowledgements and rewards will be created and delivered to supporters between October 2025 & February 2026.