<p>Edward Burtynsky's photographs of manmade environmental fiascos remind me of Sebastian Salgado's photographic documentation of human tragedies, such as famines, worker exploitation, and displacement. (Salgado's tragic subject matter is sometimes manmade and sometimes not, though aren't we all complicit, if only in our passivity--a state of inaction that is, in fact, re-created in the gallery setting as you stare helplessly at the image?) . . .

"Complicit through passivity" - definitely a good sign of a
good documentary photographer.

Somehow I don't get that looking at the Burtynsky's photography,
although I love the pictures. Urban Mines and the Oil refinery
photos are great.

Burtynsky reveals the ugly & massive hidden costs of our luxurious modern lifestyles. In that way, I feel complicit, yet the scale of his work is daunting. I feel incapable of action, numb, passive.

Burtynsky has also published Manufactured Landscapes, a hardcover book of stunning images for his mid-career retrospective earlier this year at the National Galley of Canada.

You can order the book through Toronto Image Works, Burtynsky's photo imaging company. See http://www.torontoimageworks.com for contact info.

The printing of the book itself is also an interesting story, but alas there are no production notes available online for me to link to. For a somewhat similar (in publishing process not content) photo book publishing project, see Kevin Kelly's http://www.asiagrace.com project and read the production notes.

Thanks for the Asia Grace link! I have the book, but hadn't read about the production.

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