Over six years, across four continents, Zed Nelson has examined how we humans immerse ourselves in increasingly simulated environments to mask our destructive divorce from the natural world. From theme parks, zoos and natural history museums, to national parks, African safaris and alpine resorts, this work reveals not only a global phenomenon of denial and collective self-delusion, but also a craving for a connection to a world we have turned our back on.

In a fraction of our Earth’s history, we humans have altered our world beyond anything it has experienced in tens of millions of years. Scientists are calling it a new epoch, The Anthropocene – the age of human. We have concentrated in cities and divorced ourselves from the land we once roamed and from other animals. Yet we cannot face the true scale of our loss.

This work reflects on how, at a time of environmental crisis, a consoling version of nature has been packaged as a curated ‘experience’ – an illusionary spectacle designed to obscure and reassure.

Zed Nelson is a photographer known for long-term projects that explore contemporary society. He has been recognised by numerous photography awards and previously published three books, Gun Nation, Love Me and A Portrait of Hackney. Nelson also made the critically-acclaimed documentary film, The Street.

Zed Nelson’s new book, The Anthropocene Illusion, is being released this month. The six-year project was awarded the overall prize in this year’s Sony World Photography Awards 2025.