Photographs and reportage by ICP Alum, documentary photographer, and National Geographic Explorer Mackenzie Calle (Documentary Practice and Visual Journalism ‘22) were featured in two articles in National Geographic.
Calle worked as the crew journalist on The World’s Biggest Analog—the largest proof of concept space mission which saw 60 participating astronauts across 17 habitats in 15 countries, who ran a two-week simulation in tandem, assessing crew dynamics and systems for future voyages to the Moon and Mars.
She was part of a four-person team embedded at the Mars Desert Research Station, experiencing what life could be like on Mars, from southern Utah.
She told National Geographic: “I want to photograph space so space feels possible.”
Calle’s passion for space has been a through line in her practice. In 2025, her project The Gay Space Agency was displayed at ICP’s Incubator Space. The project is a speculative archive imagining queer astronauts—a group historically not allowed to participate—in space.
Calle added: “Even though we didn’t go to space, I think across all 17 habitats, the level of diversity, age, race, ethnicity, across everything, was incredible to see and everyone coming together over one shared interest. That's what stuck with me the most.”
Image credits: Mackenzie Calle