Simpson, Joel: Earthforms, Intimate Portraits of Our Planet
JSS Books
2019
First Edition
“Earthforms: Intimate Portraits of Our Planet” is a boldly original book, both in its aesthetic-scientific-political concept, and in the way it extends what we all feel we know about landscape photography. “Earthforms” is not just another book with beautiful images. It goes far beyond the standard landscape concept, to turn an aesthetic eye on mineral configurations, putting you in remote places, where these special formations are close up and underfoot.In a time when climate change threatens the livability of our planet, Simpson seeks to direct the aesthetic force of his image collection towards deepening our commitment to environmental awareness and activism, with a specific dedication to the Lakota Water Protectors’ courageous 2016 confrontation of the corporate and state powers that laid an oil pipeline that threatened the local water source."Simpson flirts with chaos repeatedly, complicating the easy sensual analogies and undercutting the all-too-familiar 'surprises' of high-end nature photography.”—LYLE REXER, author; critic, curator; columnist for PHOTOGRAPH magazine.“Simpson has an eye for naturally occurring patterns and structures, and he presents vivid mineral deposits and eye-catching rock formations. He compares a particularly notable formation to Edvard Munch’s painting The Scream, and it’s hard to deny the resemblance. The captions are informative and will help geological novices understand how the shapes developed. They also offer references to the works of other artists, and their placement in the book’s final pages effectively allows readers to process the images separately. Although the environmentalist message is strong in the opening essays, Simpson’s later commentary emphasizes natural beauty without reiterating the threat that it faces, letting readers draw the connection themselves.”—KIRKUS REVIEWS
JSS Books
2019
First Edition
“Earthforms: Intimate Portraits of Our Planet” is a boldly original book, both in its aesthetic-scientific-political concept, and in the way it extends what we all feel we know about landscape photography. “Earthforms” is not just another book with beautiful images. It goes far beyond the standard landscape concept, to turn an aesthetic eye on mineral configurations, putting you in remote places, where these special formations are close up and underfoot.In a time when climate change threatens the livability of our planet, Simpson seeks to direct the aesthetic force of his image collection towards deepening our commitment to environmental awareness and activism, with a specific dedication to the Lakota Water Protectors’ courageous 2016 confrontation of the corporate and state powers that laid an oil pipeline that threatened the local water source."Simpson flirts with chaos repeatedly, complicating the easy sensual analogies and undercutting the all-too-familiar 'surprises' of high-end nature photography.”—LYLE REXER, author; critic, curator; columnist for PHOTOGRAPH magazine.“Simpson has an eye for naturally occurring patterns and structures, and he presents vivid mineral deposits and eye-catching rock formations. He compares a particularly notable formation to Edvard Munch’s painting The Scream, and it’s hard to deny the resemblance. The captions are informative and will help geological novices understand how the shapes developed. They also offer references to the works of other artists, and their placement in the book’s final pages effectively allows readers to process the images separately. Although the environmentalist message is strong in the opening essays, Simpson’s later commentary emphasizes natural beauty without reiterating the threat that it faces, letting readers draw the connection themselves.”—KIRKUS REVIEWS
JSS Books
2019
First Edition
“Earthforms: Intimate Portraits of Our Planet” is a boldly original book, both in its aesthetic-scientific-political concept, and in the way it extends what we all feel we know about landscape photography. “Earthforms” is not just another book with beautiful images. It goes far beyond the standard landscape concept, to turn an aesthetic eye on mineral configurations, putting you in remote places, where these special formations are close up and underfoot.In a time when climate change threatens the livability of our planet, Simpson seeks to direct the aesthetic force of his image collection towards deepening our commitment to environmental awareness and activism, with a specific dedication to the Lakota Water Protectors’ courageous 2016 confrontation of the corporate and state powers that laid an oil pipeline that threatened the local water source."Simpson flirts with chaos repeatedly, complicating the easy sensual analogies and undercutting the all-too-familiar 'surprises' of high-end nature photography.”—LYLE REXER, author; critic, curator; columnist for PHOTOGRAPH magazine.“Simpson has an eye for naturally occurring patterns and structures, and he presents vivid mineral deposits and eye-catching rock formations. He compares a particularly notable formation to Edvard Munch’s painting The Scream, and it’s hard to deny the resemblance. The captions are informative and will help geological novices understand how the shapes developed. They also offer references to the works of other artists, and their placement in the book’s final pages effectively allows readers to process the images separately. Although the environmentalist message is strong in the opening essays, Simpson’s later commentary emphasizes natural beauty without reiterating the threat that it faces, letting readers draw the connection themselves.”—KIRKUS REVIEWS