This morning I got up extra early, the weather was great, no wind and lots of fluffy white clouds with dark undersides, picture taking opportunities looked inspiring. That noise you just heard was me screaming! You see, I forgot to look at the settings on the camera and the last time I used my camera I had the ASA set to 1600. Needless to say, all the images I took this morning were way too grainy/noisy. Lesson learned – I hope. 50 images lost but the experience wasn’t a total bust. I was able to scout out some great locations close to home.
Now I want to introduce you to Edward Burtynsky, who is a Canadian industrial photographer from Toronto. He has a compelling vision of the role industry and the environment in our world and has set out to document seldom photographed subjects. Below is a sample of his work. Quite inspiring.
Oil Fields No. 1,
© Edward Burtynsky,
Belridge, California 2002
ARTIST STATEMENT
Exploring the Residual Landscape
Nature transformed through industry is a predominant theme in my work. I set course to intersect with a contemporary view of the great ages of man; from stone, to minerals, oil, transportation, silicon, and so on. To make these ideas visible I search for subjects that are rich in detail and scale yet open in their meaning. Recycling yards, mine tailings, quarries and refineries are all places that are outside of our normal experience, yet we partake of their output on a daily basis.
These images are meant as metaphors to the dilemma of our modern existence; they search for a dialogue between attraction and repulsion, seduction and fear. We are drawn by desire – a chance at good living, yet we are consciously or unconsciously aware that the world is suffering for our success. Our dependence on nature to provide the materials for our consumption and our concern for the health of our planet sets us into an uneasy contradiction. For me, these images function as reflecting pools of our times.
Edward Burtynsky