Urban/ Indistrial Landscapes are images that bear witness to major human works, ranging from factories to quarries, or enormous mining complexes and abandoned zones. They carry the reader into inaccessible and little-known areas, between sublime and disarray, to witness the imposing reality of industry that we try now to erase. The result of humans let into nature, has ended up in a physical, social and cultural reality, which is reflected in the landscapes through specific architectures and iconic elements; showing the impact humans have had on nature.
New Topographics was a term thought up by William Jenkins in 1975 to describe a group of American photographers (such as Robert Adams and Lewis Baltz). These were photographers who criticised romantic photography, as they believed human impact on our landscapes shouldn’t be ignored. The photos these artists took mostly consisted of a repeated banal aesthetic, in that they were formal, mostly black and white prints of the urban landscape. They were people who found a sense of beauty in the disruption causes by repetitive and conventional architecture placed in nature.
On the other hand, “New Topographics: Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape” was a ground-breaking exhibition of contemporary landscape photography held at the George Eastman House’s International Museum of Photography from October 1975 to February 1976.
New Topographics Photography
Landscape, Los Angeles, 1974, Frank Gohlke Tucson, Ariz, 1974, Henry Wessel Jr.
All of these artists combine nature and architecture/ human impact on the world in their photography, creating a whole new concept of landscape photography.
The first picture (top left) is a photo capturing a estate of mobile homes in an empty piece of land. The background consists of a looming mountain over towering the homes, the smooth shape of it contrasting with the blocky appearances of the houses. The nature and industrial landscape, present in the photo, clash- Adams promoting the idea of new topographics by showing us this mixed landscape and the reality of our world.
The second picture (top right) consists of a blocky box shaped building- creating an interesting photograph of a usually seen as unappealing location. Baltz included some of the silky sky to contrast with the roughly shaped architecture built on the ground below it. The solid strip of paint across the building further adds to the industrial shape of the building.
The third picture (bottom left) presents a empty parking lot surrounded by some boxy structures. The background consists of a mountain almost hidden in the fog, contrasting with the industrial foreground. I think Gohlke tried to create an idea of isolation and loneliness in the photo, creating a photo presenting a deserted parking lot contrasting with the soaring mountain peaking over the harsh edges of the buildings.
The fourth picture (bottom right) is a photograph of a seemingly abandoned house almost hidden in a thick forest of overgrown plants around it. I think Wessel tried to show that nature is more powerful than any architecture that we create, and is immortal in a sense.