July 17, 2025
Join author and conservationist Brent Martin for a journey into the remarkable life and work of George Masa, the early 20th-Century Japanese immigrant whose camera helped to preserve some of the most treasured landscapes in the Southern Appalachians. Masa’s stunning photography not only captured the beauty of the western North Carolina mountains, but was also instrumental in the protection of the Great Smokey Mountains National Park, the Appalachian Trail, and more.
In this talk, Martin will explore Masa’s legacy through the lens of his award-winning book, George Masa’s Wild Vision: A Japanese Immigrant Imagines Western North Carolina, winner of the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award. Come for the history, stay for the stunning imagery and discover how one man’s vision helps shape our region’s public lands.
About Brent Martin:
Brent Martin author, conservationist, educator, Executive Director of the Blue Ridge Bartram Trail Conservancy, 2022 Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award winner. His poetry and essays have been published in the North Carolina Literary Review, Pisgah Review, Tar River Poetry, Chattahoochee Review, Eno Journal, New Southerner, Kudzu Literary Journal, Smoky Mountain News, and elsewhere. He is also the author of The Changing Blue Ridge Mountains: Essays on Journeys Past and Present. Martin lives in the Cowee community in Western North Carolina.
6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Doors open at 5:30 p.m.
$10
If you are interested in purchasing a discounted season pass to all Stewards & Storytellers lectures, please email: nest@gofindoutdoors.org
