Integral Lens series: Edward Burtynsky
Edward Burtynsky was born in 1955 in Ontario Canada. He received his BAA in Photography / Media Studies from Ryerson University in 1982 and in 1985 founded Toronto Image Works. Early exposure to the sites of the General Motors plant in his hometown helped to formulate the development of his photographic work. His imagery explores the collective impact we as a species are having on the surface of the planet; an inspection of the human systems we`ve imposed onto natural landscapes.
His photographic depictions of global industrial landscapes are included in the collections of over sixty major museums around the world. As an active lecturer on photographic art, Burtynsky`s speaking engagements have been held at the National Gallery of Canada, the Library of Congress in Washington, the TED conferences, among others. His images appear in numerous periodicals each year including National Geographic, the New York Times, The Smithsonian Magazine. Among his distinctions are the TED Prize, The Outreach award at the Rencontres d`Arles, the Roloff Beny Book Award. In 2006 he was awarded the title of Officer of the Order of Canada. His work is represented by numerous galleries internationally.
Alongside his photographic work he co-directs feature length documentary films such as `Watermark`, the award-winning `Manufactured Landscapes`, and the upcoming `Anthropocene` in collaboration with co-director Jennifer Baichwal and producer/cinematographer Nick de Pencier of Mercury Films. A selection from this series `China`, `Mines`, `Oil`, `Quarries`, `Shipbreaking`, `Tailings` and `Water` is presented in this feature.
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Cover photo: Manufacturing #18, Cankun Factory, Zhangzhou, Fujian Province, 2005 © Edward Burtynsky, courtesy Nicholas Metivier Gallery, Toronto
An Immersive Look At Water | The Making Of Watermark
Edward Burtynsky: Manufactured landscapes (TED Talks)
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