|
My pictures are of natural landscapes that have been altered for human use. They are of places that
have imposed structure, structure that allows access, domestication, livelihood, and relaxation. They
are places worthy of celebration for their cultural representation.
I am fascinated by the ways we create a sense of place and order-each perhaps artificial, but both
nonetheless necessary-by modifying the land so that we may inhabit it. In his book Discovering the
Vernacular Landscape, J.B. Jackson writes:
In a (human-made) political landscape, the natural environment
has no inherent identity of its own; it is simply a means to an end,
a human end, and space is consequently organized so that every group,
every activity has its own well-defined space.
We humans need to order and control, and we do this by changing the natural environment. The ideal
locale to do this is on our own "turf"- the backyard, the front lawn; our "keep off", "no trespassing",
private property. In our public spaces, we plot parks with definitive boundaries, furnish them with
new, neatly surfaced tennis courts and manicured playing fields. Our roads, bridges and walkways are
carved into the earth so that we may easily access both our private and public places without hindrance.
I want and need to continue to further explore, and scrutinize the similarities and differences between
our public and private spaces. Such observations tell us something about what we are, what we were, and
what we are becoming.
|
Landscape Statement
