1996
39 15/16 in x 60 1/8 in,
Chromogenic color print
Mount Holyoke College Art Museum
MH 1999.1 purchased with the Madeleine Pinsof Plonsker (Class of 1962) Fund

When looked at closely, it becomes clear that the location of Nickel Tailings #30 is not a pleasant one. The landscape is nearly void of vegetation; a patch of dead grass at the upper right harkens to the sterility of the land. The background is akin to a desert; trash can be seen littering the foreground. Yet, this is southern Ontario, a town not far from Lake Huron – a temperate region. Even with the knowledge that the subject of the work is pollution, Burtynsky offers us an arresting, even beautiful, image. The deep varying shades of orange are like a warm fire drawing the viewer in. The organic form of the tailings becomes expressive in an abstract sense. The tailings stretch outward towards the viewer, creating an immersive quality. It is a shaken landscape where rocks, plants, water, and minerals are not quite separate elements. The high horizon line paired with a deep perspective disorientates the viewer; it becomes difficult to judge the scale of this pollution. What does it mean when a viewer can be so moved by an image of dangerous pollution? Does it somehow make the pollution less ominous? Or does the sublime effect of the artist’s deep perspective underscore the vast consequences of humanity’s influence over the landscape? Burtynsky has exposed new ways of looking at a typically undesirable landscape. Through the medium of photography, he adds both beauty and complexity to an existing space, creating a landscape in which to spur discussion.

-Elizabeth Gouin


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