Oil @ The Photographers’ Gallery – London

“In 1997 I had what I refer to as my oil epiphany. It occurred to me that the vast, human-altered landscapes that I pursued and photographed for over twenty years were only made possible by the discovery of oil and the mechanical advantage of the internal combustion engine…These images can be seen as notations by one artist contemplating the world as it is made possible through this vital energy resource and the cumulative effects of industrial evolution.”

Canadian photographer and TED prize winner Edward Burtynsky has 4 major exhibitions happening around the world right now, each of them showing the “grandeur”, understanding and intimate relationship we, humans, have with mother nature: one happening in Dartmouth college, a collaborative piece with Dutch musicians “Hexnut”, an industrial show in Nashville and the just-opened inaugural-exhibition for the re-opening of London’s Photographers’ Gallery: Oil.

 “Oil” is a decade-long survey on the subject by the Canadian artist aiming to reveal the rarely seen mechanics of the manufacture, distribution and use of one of the world’s most highly contested resources, while exploring its impact on our lives, culture and the environment. We’re all sucking on it, living on it and we wonder if we’ll have to wait until we run out of it to actually get rid of it.

Structured in 3 sections: “extraction & refinement”, “transportation & motor culture”, and “the end of oil”, Burtynsky shows us international drilling sites and refineries, then continues to distribution methods and the motor culture of freeways, eventually, leading us to the inevitable end of oil at scrap-yards, recycling grounds and abandoned oil fields.

 A unique occasion to admire the power of oil. You have until July 1st, more info on the Photographers’ Gallery website. Enjoy!