Landmark: The Fields of Landscape Photography

by William A. Ewing

An eloquent global survey of contemporary landscape photography as seen through the eyes of the leading photographers of today Landscape photography has traveled far from its origins in the picturesque or pastoral. It is at the cutting edge of contemporary image-making with leading photographers creating work that transcends definitions of “art” or “documentary.” This is the first truly international survey of a vibrant, burgeoning field of photography, its masterful image-makers, and their work.

William A. Ewing has selected more than 230 photographs by over 100 photographers, ranging from renowned figures such as Susan Derges, Edward Burtynsky, and Simon Norfolk, to younger rising stars including Pieter Hugo, Olaf Otto Becker, and Penelope Umbrico. Each of them represents an individual viewpoint of a shared concern for our changing landscape and environment.

Organized into ten themes―Sublime; Pastoral; Artefacts; Rupture; Playground; Scar; Control; Enigma; Hallucination; and Reverie― Landmark is an intelligent and poetic survey which captures a genre of photography to perfection. 240 color illustrations

Genres: Photography, Nonfiction, Art

256 pages, Hardcover

First published September 16, 2014

About the author

William A. Ewing is a Canadian art historian specializing in photography. He served as the director of the Musée de l'Élysée in Lausanne from 1996 to 2010 and has been a research professor in the art history department at the University of Geneva, where he has focused on the history of photography. He has curated numerous international exhibitions and authored several books on the photographic representation of the human body. He is also the founder of the Todi Circle, an annual think tank on photography held in Todi, Italy. His publications include The Body, Le Siècle du Corps, and Edward Steichen: Carnet Mondain.

Reviews

[nobody · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought I would like Landmark when I saw a photograph of the Prada Marfa within the first few pages, and it did not disappoint! In Landmark, curator William Ewing gathers a collection of striking images into themed sections prefaced by his own thought-provoking text. Ewing explains that he seeks out photographs that show the interaction between humans and the environment, rather than those that only show Ansel-Adams-style pristine landscapes. This intersection of people and land is sometimes benign and peaceful, as seen in the pastoral photographs of England by Simon Roberts. Other times it is decidedly violent, as in the photographs of nickel tailings by Edward Burtynsky and oil spills by Daniel Beltra. I feel the sections that include altered photographs (titled hallucination and reverie) are less successful in evicting emotion, but that may be a personal preference.

[Kevin Bjorke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a terrific overview of the, err, current landscape.

As a personal measurement, after I returned it to the library I went out to buy a copy.

[Leonard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a comprehensive collection of landscape photography from around the world. I recognized the names of some of the photographers included in this collection but the work of others was new to me. There is a strong emphasis on how people have changed and often damaged the landscape, although the photographers are not necessarily trying to take a stand against anything. They are simply finding the beauty and design it what is there. Many of the photographs are very abstract and I had to read the caption before I knew what the picture contained. This book can inspire a person to look at the landscape around them with new eyes. It can compel a photographer to pick his camera and go looking for new and original images.