Edward Burtynsky: Australian Minescapes

Is there beauty in the marks that people make on the land? Renowned Canadian photographer, Edward Burtynsky seeks the answer.

While Edward Burtynsky is one of the world’s leading contemporary landscape photographers, the focus of his work is not the natural landscape but, in his words, “manufactured landscapes”. His photographic work has examined quarries, mine sites, industrial landscapes, oilfields and industrial sites around the world.

This series of images taken in the Eastern Goldfields and the Pilbara of Western Australia, continues Burtynsky’s examination of natural landscapes modified by the quest of the raw materials required by our modern society. However, Burtynsky’s pursuit is also to find the beauty left behind.

"The concept of the landscape as architecture has become, for me, an act of imagination. I remember looking at buildings made of stone, and thinking, there has to be an interesting landscape somewhere out there, because these stones had to have been taken out of the quarry one block at a time. I had never seen a dimensional quarry, but I envisioned an inverted cubed architecture on the side of a hill. I went in search of it, and when I had it on my ground glass I knew that I had arrived.” Edward Burtynsky

Australian Minescapes is a new body of work by internationally renowned photographer Edward Burtynsky, commissioned by FotoFreo Inc, with the support of BHP Billiton Iron Ore and the FotoFreo Angels, for the FotoFreo 2008 Festival. This significant collection was presented to the Western Australian Museum by the artist and FotoFreo Inc following its extremely successful display at the Western Australian Museum – Maritime, Fremantle from April – July 2008. This series of images taken in the eastern goldfields and the Pilbara of Western Australia, continues Burtynsky’s examination of natural landscapes modified by mankind in the pursuit of the raw materials required for our modern society. However, Burtynsky’s pursuit is also to find the beauty in the marks that mankind makes on the land.  

THE ARTIST

While Edward Burtynsky is one of the world’s leading contemporary landscape photographers, the focus of his work is not the natural landscape but in his words, “manufactured landscapes”. His photographic work has examined quarries, mine sites, industrial landscapes, oilfields and industrial sites in the third world. Edward Burtynsky is one of Canada’s most respected photographers. His photographic depictions of global industrial landscapes are in the collections of many major museums around the world, including the National Gallery of Canada, the Bibliotèque Nationale in Paris, the Museum of Modern Art and Guggenheim Museum in New York. His has been awarded the TED Prize, The Outreach award at the Rencontres d’Arles, The Flying Elephant Fellowship, Applied Arts Magazine book awards, and the Roloff Beny Book award. In 2007 he was awarded the title Officer of the Order of Canada and his honorary degrees include: Doctor of Laws, from Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Doctor of Fine Arts in Photography, Ryerson University, Toronto and Doctor or Fine Arts from Monserrat College of Art, Beverly, Massachusetts.

Tailings #1, 2007 © Edward Burtynsky