A reflection on an exhibition attended, which also relates to an issue or concept covered within the module.
For this post we have been asked to reflect on a visit to an event, talk, exhibition or public space. Having previously studied photography as part of my first degree I decided to attend an exhibition by world-renowned photographer Andreas Gursky (See Fig. 1). Gursky, a German photographer, premiered his first UK exhibition at the Hayward Gallery in January 2018. This newly refurbished brutalist building, in the heart of London’s Southbank, compliments Gursky’s stark and unsentimental photographs which deal with complex societal issues. The exhibition featured a large collection of his images ranging ‘from the early 1980s through to his most recent work’ (Hayward Gallery, 2018).
Figure 1
Gursky is known for his highly detailed, large-scale landscapes which he achieves through the use of a large format camera. His images provide us with a view into the contemporary world as he sees it and ‘his subjects range from landscapes to architecture, to individuals at work, and everything in between’ (Drexler, 2015: 34). Gursky himself has stated that his images present a critique on ‘the issues of our time — climate change, the exploitation of natural resources, working conditions [and] the monopolisation of distribution structures’ (Jobey, 2018). He leaves it up to the viewer to decide what each of his images represent; he is simply making us aware of the state of the world today.
In his early work there is a trend of depicting individuals in vast natural environments as he is interested in exploring our social uses of landscapes. Many of Gursky's images are taken from a distanced vantage point which creates the effect of humans being dwarfed in these natural environments. According to Alix Ohlin (2002), Gursky's work falls into the category of the ‘contemporary sublime’. Witnessing the ‘sublime’ has the power to elicit a sense of terror in the spectator. I certainly had a feeling of unease as I observed some of his images. One such image, Dolomiten, Cable Car (1987) evoked a sense of awe, as well as peril, as we see how inconsequential human existence can be in the face of nature (See Fig. 2).
Figure 2
In the image above, the tiny suspended cable car is overshadowed by the surrounding mountain range. The people depicted in his images seem unable to match the magnitude of the natural world, ‘crowds of people look tiny and relentless, making their presence felt in the world, like a minute, leisurely colony of ants’ (2002: 23). This relationship between nature and culture has been explored through photography since the medium's invention. The original line of thought insisted that ‘human culture … [was] dominated by nature’, however, we now see society ‘to be increasingly in control of natural phenomena’ (Bull, 2010: 9). Gursky’s image Ruhr Valley (1989) shows the harsh impact we can have on the natural world (See Fig. 3). The massive concrete structure brutally cuts through the environment and the lone figure below can be used as an as an indicator of the scale of human influence.
Figure 3
David Bate (2009: 106) suggests that Gursky depicts a world in which humans are a ‘blight on an otherwise picturesque nature’ (2009: 106). This is nowhere more apparent than in his photographs of sites of mass tourism. Travel and tourism make up one of the world’s largest industries and the impact this can have on an environment can be devastating (Rustin, 2001: 97). Heavily concentrated visitations from large groups of people can place areas under risk of degradation. Gursky’s images could be seen as disrupting the ‘tourist gaze’ which normally seeks to romanticize our environments and turn ‘a blind eye to signs of modernity’ (Urry & Larsen, 2011: 175). His image, Rimini (2003) shows the scale of our ability to colonize space with the thousands of beach umbrellas covering almost the entire surface area of the shoreline (See Fig 4). In his photograph, Niagara Falls (1989), we are again presented with the idea of the sublime (See Fig. 4). The formidable nature of the Falls represents a threat to the tourist boat encroaching into mother nature’s territory. In Gursky’s images, ‘there is no longer any nature uncharted by man’ our intrusion is felt as we can see ‘the invasive landmarks of a global economy’ (Ohlin, 2002: 23).
Figure 4
The world Gursky is depicting in his photographs is one that is increasingly under the control of globalisation. Globalisation refers to ‘the intensification of global interconnectedness … a world of movement and mixture, contact and linkages, and persistent cultural interaction and exchange’ (Inda & Rosaldo, 2002: 2). The impacts of globalization feature heavily in Gursky’s work as he aims to represent ‘contemporary life today’ (Buck, 2018). Witnessing the reality of globalisations effect on the world is another aspect of fear fostered by his images as we are confronted with ‘the industrial [and] technological sublime’ (Southbank Centre, 2018). In order to represent this world affected by globalisation, he digitally manipulates his photographs including ‘altering the architecture of the built and natural environments, creating repetitions, deepening colours, and collapsing time’ (Ohlin, 2002: 24). An example of this is produced in his image 99 Cent (1999) (See Fig. 5).
Figure 5
This digitally altered image of a supermarket represents the ‘hyper-capitalism’ of society (Begg, 2005: 625). This use of manipulation evidences Gursky’s move away from ‘realism’. Alix Ohlin (2002: 24, 28) believes that this works to ‘heighten the sense of the sublime’ which, in turn, creates ‘an ethereal reality’. Gursky is interested in constructing a reality which he believes, paradoxically, ‘bring us closer to the truth’ (Southbank Centre, 2018). He is trying to depict the ‘postmodern’ world ‘characterized by mobility, changeability, and flow rather than by universals of truth and unity’ (Sturken & Cartwright, 2009: 311-312). I went into the exhibition with the prior knowledge that much of his work is altered and manipulated. This potentially changed my initial perception of his images compared to those who were unaware of the scale by which he is prepared to edit his work. According to theorists Lisa Cartwright and Marita Sturken (2009:308), ‘as we entered into a postmodern era characterized by media and technologies of simulation, we lost sight of "the real"’. Through his use of digital technologies, Gursky ‘aims to provide an "accurate" image of the modern subject but, when confronted by the vast, complex dense world of globalisation, he feels he must digitally alter reality to achieve this’ (Begg, 2005: 3).
Whilst some believe he is simply using the affordances of the digital world to further his commentary, in my view, there is a hint of hypocrisy in his work. Gursky is photographing the very processes which have enabled him to have huge success and world-wide exposure. ‘The expansion of photographic imaging continues hand in hand with technological developments in photography, trade, transport systems and through war’ (Bate, 2009: 151). He has capitalized on societies progress which enabled the wide-scale ‘production, circulation, distribution and consumption of photographic images’ (2009: 151). One of his photographs, Rhine II (1999), was sold at an auction in 2011 for ‘$4.3 million’ and became the most expensive photograph ever sold (Stuart, 2018).
Gursky does recognise and remind us that we, as individuals, have a part to play in the cycle of capitalism and mass consumption and I believe that his work can help to heighten our appreciation for his critique. This is exampled in one of his most iconic photographs Amazon (2016) (See Fig. 6).
Figure 6
The above image was taken in an Amazon warehouse in Arizona. This picture clearly represents consumer culture and excessive consumption. As someone who uses Amazon quite frequently, it is rather jarring to see the mass of products laid out in this way. Using a site like Amazon you can become detached from the chain of production as all you are doing is interacting with products through a device or screen. Gursky states
The confrontation of an image this size reminds us of the stark reality of consumerism, and ultimately the waste that can go along with it. This next image Untitled XIII (2002) clearly shows the aftermath of the practice of excessive consumption (See Fig. 7). The excruciating detail of his images, as illustrated below, allows us to pore over the mountains of rubbish and we may begin to recognise how we have had some part to play in the continued abuse of our planet.
Figure 7
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