Edward Burtynsky: “ The goal of my work to make people feel uncomfortable…” We find parallels in the work of Burtynsky, a Canadian, to another of our favorite photographers, Chris Jordan. Burtynsky’s photographs have been labeled “industrial landscapes.” He uniquely captures how nature has been transformed through industry and how our environment has been “altered” by man. One of Burtynsky’s reoccuring subjects has been oil, it’s mining and production, and more recently he has looked at the Alberta Oil Sands. So, as part of our visit to Alberta and “look at the oil sands,” we thought it was apropos to introduce his work to you!
Without making judgments, Burtynsky causes us to pause and question, as we see the tremendous impact human beings have had on altering our natural landscape. Similar to Jordan, the scale and scope that Burtynsky uses, draws us in and then shocks us. On our first look, we see a “beautiful,” colorful and provocative photograph; it isn’t until we finally realize what we are looking at that we begin to feel “uncomfortable.” Sit down with the kids in your life, watch and listen to Burtynsky as he shows us the path of oil, all the way to it’s endgame…
