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Influencing the photography of J Henry Fair

Avishay Artsy Mar 3, 2011

J Henry Fair’s photographs uniquely capture the human impact on the landscape. Yet there is a rich history of artists and photographers that have interpreted their environmental concerns through creative expression. We asked Fair to provide us a list of some of the artists that have influenced his work, as well as other artists who are currently working in a similar vein.

Some artists that have influenced J Henry Fair’s environmental approach

Charles Sheeler – “A painter and photographer who reveled in the beauty of industry and machines”

The Italian Futurists – “Celebrated the beauty of machines as the pinnacle of human achievement. Introduced a wonderful dynamism to their best work, and toyed with abstraction.”

Wassily Kandinsky – “His exploration of abstraction, and the interaction of basic shapes and colors which alternated between abstract and literal, created a wonderful dynamic.”

Alberto Giacometti – “Examined the place of the individual in the modern world, and the diminishment that industry and commerce impose.”

Edward Weston – “One of the earliest photographers exploring shapes and the interplay of light, exploring the interaction between abstract and literal.”

Walker Evans – “Documented a disappearing culture, the end of American regional uniqueness, and the impact of the economy on individuals and localities.”

László Moholy-Nagy – “A photographer who started to move away from the obvious literal application of the medium.”

Oskar Schlemmer – “Bauhaus master of many media who explored the interplay between man and machine.”

Artists who work in a similar space currently

Emmett Gowan – “I think of his black and whites, often aerial, of industry and pollution.”

Richard Misrach – “Humans impacted by industry.”

Jann Arthus Bertrand – “Wonderful aerial abstracts of man-made shapes.”

Edward Burtinsky – “Similar to my work, though less abstract. Beautiful images of industrial impacts, done with large format.”

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