Gallery Purchase with funds raised during the 2018 Give Campus Campaign

Olivia Crumm’s video The World is Breathing is about close looking. It presents a series of seemingly still images that are, in fact, incredibly slow-moving—a gentle breeze, receding light, a slow inhale. Through the passage of time, evident in changing light and shadow and shifting colors, the ordinary scenes mesmerize, subtly shifting from the mundane to the sublime. While viewing her work, you may become aware of your own breath slowing.


The World is Breathing was a part of her Bard College Thesis in which she explored sublime ordinary moments of life. The work creates a space where the viewer can reflect on and observe patience and stillness. Crumm’s analysis of The World is Breathing states, “stillness is quiet but it moves; it breathes in a moment of drawn out motion–a slow inhale.” Rather than seeing an artwork all at once, like in a photograph, the viewer must wait for the video to reveal itself over time, in essence, allowing the viewer to watch the world breathe in real time as they watch the video.