Lens on hunger

This exhibition gives new meaning to the phrase “starving artist.”

“Starved for Attention: The Crisis of Childhood Malnutrition,” opening June 4 at VII Gallery in DUMBO, exposes the crisis of global childhood malnutrition with works that are at once beautifully composed and harrowing to look at.

In one striking image by Jessica Dimmock (pictured), taken in Burkina Faso in West Africa, a woman with an infant strapped to her back walks through a field of dried-up wheat, the bold blues of her skirt and red of her headdress making for a stark contrast with the dead yellow of the field.

In another, taken by Ron Haviv in Bangladesh, a mother stares off with a worried look while she breastfeeds, with both mother and child nearly erased completely by the light that dances across the image, save for her piercing look.

A cry for attention indeed.

“Starved for Attention: The Crisis of Childhood Malnutrition” at VII Gallery [28 Jay St. at Plymouth Street in DUMBO, (212) 337-3130], June 4 to July 2. Open 10 am-6 pm daily. For info, visit www.starvedforattention.org.