Please join us as we welcome acclaimed photographer Lennette Newell for a discussion and book signing of her award winning photography book

Primates

PRIMATES: A Kinship with All Creatures

Lennette Newell

with a Foreword by Debra Curtin

Acclaimed photographer Lennette Newell unveils extraordinary 20-year journey documenting our closest living relatives in Primates: A Kinship with All Creatures. This stunning black-and-white portrait collection features a foreword by primate conservancy founder and essays from leading gibbon and orangutan experts, and will be available June 2026.

Primates: A Kinship with All Creatures offers a breathtaking photographic collection by naturalist and photographer Lennette Newell, featuring 187 intimate black and-white portraits capturing the profound connection between humans and primates, alongside a foreword by Debra Curtin, founder of New England Primate Conservancy, and essays by Gabriella Skollar of California’s Gibbon Conservation Center and Tomoko Kanamori of Japan’s Orangutan Research Center. The book arrives at a pivotal moment for wildlife conservation, as habitat loss, climate change, and illegal wildlife trafficking push many primate species toward extinction.

Drawing on 20 years of fieldwork across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, Newell’s patient observation and technical mastery reveal the individual personalities, complex emotions, and remarkable intelligence of our primate cousins. From the dense forest canopies of Uganda’s Kibale National Park to the breathtaking highlands of Ethiopia’s Simien Mountains, from the mangrove ecosystems of Borneo to conservation centers dedicated to protecting endangered species, these portraits transcend documentation to become art—revealing souls behind the eyes, stories within gestures, and the threads connecting all living beings. “At a critical moment for wildlife conservation, this stunning photographic collection documents the beauty, vulnerability, and resilience of the world’s primates,” the book states. More than a photography collection, Primates is a love letter to our evolutionary family—and a plea for their survival in an uncertain future.

The book features an extensive portfolio organized by region—Africa, Asia, and Latin America—showcasing species from mountain gorillas and chimpanzees to gibbons, orangutans, lemurs, and dozens of monkey species. Newell’s intimate approach, whether photographing wild troops in their natural habitats or working with conservation centers to create studio-quality portraits, captures moments of tenderness between mothers and infants, the commanding presence of alpha males, the playful exuberance of juveniles, and the quiet dignity of elderly primates.

Skollar’s essay on gibbons illuminates the remarkable vocal abilities of these “singing apes,” describing the unforgettable experience of the gibbon choir at the Gibbon Conservation Center. Kanamori’s contribution details the delicate balance between ecotourism and research in Borneo’s rainforests, showcasing how long-term field studies contribute to orangutan conservation.

Additional appendices include primate world distribution maps, IUCN conservation status listings by region, and a comprehensive index, making this volume both a stunning art book and an essential reference for understanding our endangered primate relatives.

PRIMATES: A Kinship with All Creatures will be on sale at the event, or call Garcia Street Books at (505) 986-0151 to order your copy ahead of time.

Lennette Newell was born in the high plains of Nebraska, the daughter of a large-animal veterinarian. She began her career as a commercial photographer specializing in advertising campaigns featuring humans and animals, while maintaining a passion for personal projects photographing animals and landscapes. Her work has been featured

in exhibitions worldwide, and she has received numerous international awards for her photography. By celebrating the diversity of the animal kingdom through her work, she hopes to promote the preservation and peaceful coexistence of all species. She lives with her family in Santa Fe, New Mexico.