Sheila Pree Bright's exhibition 'breathe' invites visitors to look inwards at Emory's Woodruff Library

Sheila Pree Bright's “breathe” turns to nature, creating a multisensory space for mindfulness in a series of transportive landscapes. (Photo courtesy of Sheila Pree Bright)

A new photography exhibition at Emory University’s Woodruff Library invites you to pause, reflect and find serenity. Atlanta photographer Sheila Pree Bright has spent years documenting human activities, particularly related to activism and Black cultural heritage, but her new show, “breathe” turns to nature, creating a multisensory space for mindfulness in a series of transportive landscapes.

The exhibition is on view in the Woodruff Library’s Schatten Galleries through Dec. 21, and Pree Bright recently joined Lois Reitzes on “City Lights” to share more about the “breathe” experience.

Pree Bright was documenting the Black Lives Matter movement when she, like many others, found herself grappling with intense isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sudden closure of the entire world that she knew sparked a shift in her perspective.