Photographer Research - Edward Burtynsky

Edward Burtynsky is a Canadian photographer who was born in 1955. He is most widely known for his large-format photographs of industrial landscapes. As an artist he has been featured in over 50 museums including the well known Guggenheim Museum and the Canadian National Gallery. Burtynsky was introduced to photography at a young age by his father who purchased a dark room, this was how he learnt to create black and white photographic prints. Further from this, Burtynsky and his sister opened a small business taking portraits. In his twenties Burtynsky began working in printing and took classes in photography eventually ending up at Ryerson Poly-technical Institute. Some of Burtynsky's most famous photographs are views of landscapes, these include water landscapes of meandering rivers and waste lands.

I have chosen to study Edward Burtynskys work as I love the surrealist look he manages to add to nature, he makes it seem almost man made despite most of his photographs being natural. Edward Burtynsky has influenced me to shoot some natural water areas in my project.

I love this photograph by Edward Burtynsky because at first glance this may look like a tree however this is really a meandering canal that has created a wonderful natural piece of art. This shows just how powerful nature can be. This photo contains so much depth, the main river leading up the central line of the photograph is stunning and the pure colour of the river in contrast with the icy surroundings and brown colour of the earth beneath the top layer really adds a dramatic feel to this image.

This photograph represents the danger that man kind pose to the natural elements, despite the fact water has the power to overpower a million men at once, collectively we have the power to destroy it. Burtynsky captures this perfectly, almost looking like the boat is trapped by our own human disaster. This photograph carries dark tones which adds lots of form to the photograph. The lack of colours emphasizes the importance of looking after the earth.

This photograph is an incredible work of art by Burtynsky, the dark burnt orange lava flooding across the burnt out desolate volcanic land is vibrant and shocking to look at. The contrast of the black and orange add depth to the photograph along with the river of orange lava which leads up the centre of the photograph creating depth in the piece.

This photograph by Edward Burtynsky shows the destruction that we as human kind cause in our search for oil. The competitive industry which makes millions every year creates spaces like this in the world. The image is both beautiful and scary . The reflection of the destruction in the water is terrifying but shows just how powerful water is.

Edward Burtynsky has given me insight to the destruction of humans on nature which intrigues me and makes me want to focus on some natural water. I would love to investigate the power of the water that has the ability to destruct lives but also save lives. 

To summarise my research on Edward Burtynsky, he is extremely talented and not many photographers come close to capturing the pure emotion that he captures within his photographs of these natural elements. These photos tell silent stories of how much the world is suffering at human natures hands. The prospect of what awaits future generations can be questioned, I am thank ful we have artists like Burtynsky who can translate these issues into the modern ignorant world.