24.09. – 03.12.2016


EDWARD BURTYNSKY
ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS

Under the EMOP Berlin, European Month of Photography 2016 Galerie Springer Berlin presents the Essential Elements exhibition by Edward Burtynsky showing a selection of works from his various series. The exhibition accompanies the publication of a book by the same name, (Thames & Hudson, September 2016). The German edition Essenz is being published at the same time by Prestel Verlag. The book and exhibition provide an overview of Burtynsky's many different projects and include a selection of works that have never been seen before.

Whereas nearly all previous exhibitions and publications have been limited to a specific theme (mines, oil, water...), various cycles will be combined together in this book and exhibition.
Furthermore, two large-scale works from the Indian Salt Pans series from 2016 will be presented. A book with the same title will be published this fall by Steidl Verlag.

Edward Burtynsky's work is described by the Canadian author and curator William A. Ewing in his text in Essential Elements aptly: “In the past decade Canada’s Edward Burtynsky has risen to prominence as one of the world’s most accomplished photographers. His large-scale works are both aesthetically engaging and impressive in their lucid depiction of massive human interventions upon the landscape.

Yet they never let the social and environmental costs of this relentless transformation slip out of sight. While Burtynsky respectfully acknowledges our collective accomplishments, he reminds us of the steep price we pay for unbridled material wealth. If Huxley’s warning of a ‘superlative catastrophe’ fell on deaf ears in 1928 (after all, industry was roaring along, and the wealthy readers of the article in Vanity Fair were wallowing in dividends) Burtynsky’s stark picture of a ravaged Earth, coming almost a century later, should gain firmer purchase on minds alarmed by the mounting evidence of climate disruption.“

About Edward Burtynsky:
Edward Burtynsky, born in 1955 in Ontario, studied Photography and Media Design at Ryerson University in Toronto. In his work he explores the complicated connections between nature and industry. Edward Burtynsky is considered one of the most well-known and renowned photographers in Canada, and his works can be found in over 50 major museums throughout the world: National Gallery of Canada, MoMA, Guggenheim NYC, and many more.

28.03. – 24.05.2014


EDWARD BURTYNSKY
WATER Part II
NEW RELEASES


The Galerie Springer Berlin is pleased to present to you Part 2 of the exhibition WATER by EDWARD BURTYNSKY. The second part of the exhibition features, for the most part, new, previously unpublished works from the series.

Along with the film WATERMARK and the BURTYNSKY – WATER book (Steidl), it is Mr Burtynsky’s largest project to date, documenting the scale and impact of manufacturing and consumption on the world’s water supplies. Burtynsky chronicles the various roles that water plays in modern life – as a source of healthy ecosystems and energy, as a key element in cultural and religious rituals and as a rapidly depleting resource. The photographs, both beautiful and haunting, create a compelling global portrait that illustrates humanity’s past, present and future relationship with the natural world.

Shooting in ten different countries for the WATER project, Burtynsky’s subjects include dry-land farming in Spain, pivot irrigation sites in Texas, and the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. In these instances, Burtynsky took to the air using conventional helicopters, remote controlled helicopters and small fixed-wing aircraft, to bring the scale of the human imprint into a more meaningful perspective. He also travelled to photograph millions of people bathing in the cleansing power of the sacred Ganges River in India; mega-dam construction on the upper Yangtze and the once-a-year silt release on the Yellow River in China, the precious virgin watersheds of British Columbia and the dry beds of the Colorado River Delta.

The documentary WATERMARK by Edward Burtynsky and the multiple award-winning director Jennifer Baichwal ("Manufactured Landscapes") shows in fascinating images the universal significance of water and the importance of this essential resource for the future. After the celebrated European première of the film at this year's Berlinale, the film launches nationwide on 15 May 2014. The world première took place at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. Here, the work was awarded the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award 2013.

31.01. – 15.03.2014


EDWARD BURTYNSKY
WATER
Photographs 2009 – 2013


We are pleased to present Canadian Photographer Edward Burtynsky. After his well renown OIL in 2012 at cIo Berlin we are showing a selection of work from his latest series WATER, in collaboration with Galerie Stefan Röpke, Cologne. Along with the film WATERMARK and the BURTYNSKY – WATER book (Steidl), it is Mr Burtynsky’s largest project to date, documenting the scale and impact of manufacturing and consumption on the world’s water supplies.

Burtynsky chronicles the various roles that water plays in modern life – as a source of healthy ecosystems and energy, as a key element in cultural and religious rituals and as a rapidly depleting resource. The photographs, both beautiful and haunting, create a compelling global portrait that illustrates humanity’s past, present and future relationship with the natural world.

Shooting in ten different countries for the WATER project, Burtynsky’s subjects include dry-land farming in Spain, pivot irrigation sites in Texas, and the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. In these instances, Burtynsky took to the air using conventional helicopters, remote controlled helicopters and small fixed-wing aircraft, to bring the scale of the human imprint into a more meaningful perspective.

He also travelled to photograph millions of people bathing in the cleansing power of the sacred Ganges River in India; mega-dam construction on the upper Yangtze and the once-a-year silt release on the Yellow River in China, the precious virgin watersheds of British Columbia and the dry beds of the Colorado River Delta.