Darlinghurst’s Taylor Square in Sydney will show In The Wake of Progress, a huge audio visual projection by accomplished Canadian contemporary photographer, Edward Burtynsky, from August 25 to September 18.
The 22-minute multimedia project – images and video projected on three giant screens accompanied by an original score – explores how human industry has impacted the planet and is a call for action on climate change.
Burtynsky has spent over four decades documenting industrial landscapes and the repercussions it has on civilisation and the natural environment. Short videos pan through and over forests then juxtapose to logged areas; photos show oceans and mountains of human waste; canals in Asia lined with corrugated tin shacks; Australian mining sites; cargo ships loaded with shipping containers and aerial views of endless car yards; factory floors, and so on.
While having only viewed online previews and publicity material, In The Wake of Progress appears to share similarities with the visually-mesmerising yet haunting non-narrative documentaries by Ron Fricke, Baraka and Samsara, which explore similar concepts.
A sequence of beautiful images, curated to show harsh realities about humanity and its complex relationship with the planet.
‘I like the fact that you can be standing there and not absolutely be sure what you are looking at,’ said Burtynsky to the Sydney Morning Herald. ‘I’m also not here to point fingers. I’m trying to keep my work as revelatory versus accusatory. I don’t want just to speak to the choir but also to touch people who may be at the point where they can be emotionally, intellectually and viscerally convinced there is something going on.
‘Ultimately, what I’m hoping for is that people understand that the Earth’s biodiversity in all its glory, whether it’s the coral reefs or the ancient forests or the mountains or the water systems, can’t just be taken for granted and stomped all over.’
Burtynsky, 67, grew up in southern Ontario, where just a few clicks over the border is Detroit, the once-mighty manufacturing heart of America fallen on hard times due to the decline of the automotive industry. Growing up in close proximity to one of America’s great industrial failures piqued the photographer’s lifelong interest in global heavy industry.
‘Nature transformed through industry is a predominant theme in my work,’ Burtynsky writes in his website statement. ‘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.’
Burtynsky, 67, will come to Sydney to present a series of talks including a free talk on September 1 with journalist, James Valentine. It’s an out-of-season event by Sydney Festival, with the talk partnership with the Australian Museum, and supported by the NSW Government’s $50 million CBD Revitalisation Program.
– In The Wake of Progress is showing for free at Taylor Square, Darlinghurst from August 25 to September 18, 5pm to 10pm daily. Click here for more info.
Be First to Comment