SEDIMENTAL by Margeaux Walter

THANK YOU, CO-PUBLISHERS! GOING TO PRINT! Anticipated release fall 2026 11.25 x 9.5625 inches; approximately 75 color photographs; 128 pages; hardcover. $75.00 + $9.95 domestic shipping Essay by Nathaniel Rich Margeaux Walter’s performative photographs in Sedimental highlight a dynamic group of seemingly picture-perfect environments throughout the western United States, altered by the artist’s nuanced presence within them. While at first glance these spaces may convey grandeur and breathtaking views, there are more layers within the photographs, and the geological sites where they are made. Walter describes her process thus: “I begin each work by photographing sections of the landscapes in which I will again immerse myself. Printing these photographs onto fabric, I sew them into garments/draperies, and then return to the landscape to create a new narratives. This method recontextualizes the climate changes the landscape is currently experiencing, has experienced in the past, or is subject to in the future.” There is a “sublime kitsch” evident within Walter’s photographs. The rich color and calendar-worthy views—neither marred nor heavily altered by the artist’s presence within them—belie a subtle visual commentary on the (largely male) history of landscape photography, particularly that of the American west. Walter’s temporary, non-invasive modifications and her resulting photographs form new perspectives on the equilibrium between the natural world and our human presence within it. Sedimental challenges viewers to engage in the act of seeing, and to question the veracity of what one perceives. Margeaux Walter (b. Seattle, 1982; lives in Joshua Tree and New York) received her MFA from Hunter College in 2014 and her BFA from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in 2006. Her work has been recognized by Magenta Foundation, Center Santa Fe, HeadOn Photo Festival, Photolucida, Prix de la Photographie Paris, International Photography Awards, The Julia Margaret Cameron Award, and other organizations. She has been selected as an artist in residence by Headlands, Montalvo Arts Center, MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, Marble House Project, VCCA, JTHAR, Red Gate Gallery in Beijing and BigCi in Bilpin, Australia (Environmental Award). In 2020 she was the recipient of the Sony Alpha Female Award (2020). Her work has been published in The New York Times, New York Post, Seattle Times, Boston Globe, Courrier International, and Blouin Art Info, and exhibited at MOCA Los Angeles, CPW, The Butler Institute of American Art, Sonoma County Museum, Tacoma Art Museum, and the Griffin Museum of Photography. Walter is represented by Winston Wachter Fine Art in New York / Seattle. Sedimental is her first book. Nathaniel Rich (b. New York, 1980; lives in New Orleans) is an American novelist and essayist. He is the author of Cloudthief (forthcoming with MCD Books, July 2026) and three previous novels, all New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice selections. He has also written two works of nonfiction on environmental themes: Second Nature (MCD, 2021), which includes the story that serves as the basis for the film Dark Waters; and Losing Earth (MCD, 2019), which is currently being adapted into a film directed by Tom McCarthy. Rich is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine and a frequent contributor to Harper's and the New York Review of Books. He teaches at Tulane University, and is a 2025 Guggenheim Fellow.