New Photographs by Edward Burtynsky
June 29 to August 31, 2014
In their highly seductive aesthetics, the photographies of the Canadian artist Edward Burtynsky (b. 1955) exemplify the conflict between reclaiming of this indispensable to life resource and it's exploitation through mankind. Burtynskys most recent series of works is dedicated to water. Similar to his series "Oil" which was shown at Museum Sinclair Haus in 2011, he chooses an elevated position, climbs cranes or shoots images from a helicopter. This distanced bird's view allows the waterscapes, which beforehand were deformed or destroyed by men, a unique aesthetics and this aesthetics contrasts their actual condition. Such visual abstractions connected with a perfect sense of composition offer his works a contradictory character.
His impressive photographies range from dry farming in Spain to the oil plague in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Besides his photographies, Burtynky realized an impressive motion picture titled "Watermark" which is to be seen at the exhibition, too, and which premiered in Europe on the 2014 Berlinale encountering strong recognition.
As a mutually genius comment on Edward Burtynsky's photographies and film, artist Juliette Israël (b. 1976) installed her room installation "Under the Surface". The impressive work consists of blue, green, and white plastic bottles which are arranged as a wave and connect the ground floor with the upper level exhibition spaces. As an artificial water surface hanging from the ceiling this highly aesthetic installation refers only on the second look to the disturbing accumulation of plastic garbage in the world's oceans.
