25 juli 2005
CHRIS JORDAN is a 38-year-old Seattle-based photographer whose large, overwhelming photographs chronicle the excesses of American consumerism. View whirlpools of cellphones, the mysterious "e-bank," and other studies of the aesthetics of waste here (click "images").
From his statement: "The immense scale of our consumption can appear desolate, macabre, oddly comical, full of irony, even strangely beautiful; for me its consistent feature is a staggering complexity. Perhaps our vast piles of junk can serve as visual metaphors for the difficult questions that we Americans face as the earth's most voracious resource gluttons." NYT story on Jordan.
Posted by ypsidixit at 25 juli 2005 16:51
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Comments
It's great stuff. And I'm interested in the huge amount of planning and care he takes in getting these seemingly chaotic shots just right (very different to my ad hoc methods...).
Posted by: Matt Blackcustard at 25 juli 2005 18:13
They are stunning, aren't they? Simple images, speaking loudly.
Posted by: Laura at 25 juli 2005 19:05
Of course, those cars are all crushed and stacked up awaiting...recycling!They are not just going to rust away like that. Scrap steel is quite valuable and sought-after these days. With the present scrap market, likely they will be sent to China, later to return as something for sale at Wal*Mart.
Posted by: doug at 25 juli 2005 20:52
The recycling industry in China is a horror story. No environmental protections whatsoever. People stand over cauldrons of melted plastic, breathing toxins. Waterways are fouled with effluvia. I was startled to learn that the U.S.'s biggest export is...waste paper.
Trash is big business.
Posted by: Laura at 25 juli 2005 21:06
NPR story on e-recycling in China.
Posted by: Laura at 25 juli 2005 21:17
The Basel Action Network site offers a lot of eye-opening stories about where our waste ends up. Asbestos-laden Danish ships broken down in India, toxic U.S. cell phones ending up in Africa.
Posted by: Laura at 25 juli 2005 21:34