Edward Burtynsky

Edward Burtynsky, Uranium Tailings No. 12,Elliot Lake, Ontario 1995

Edward Burtynsky, Nickel Tailings No. 37, Sudbury, Ontario 1996

Edward Burtynsky, Carrara Marble Quarries No. 25, Carrara, Italy 1993

Edward Burtynsky, Vermont Marble Company No. 16, Active Granite Section, Rochester, Vermont 1991

Edward Burtynsky, Oxford Tire Pile No. 5, Westley, California 1999

Les photographies de Edward Burtynsky sont des poèmes visuels sur l'activité humaine et son impact sur le paysage.
The photographs of Edward Burtynsky are visual poems on the human activity and its impact on the landscape.

"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." From his website

http://www.edwardburtynsky.com