Gardendiptychs

The Gardendiptych series consists of ten digitally constructed black and white photographs which illustrate the confrontation between diverse conflicting elements which are apparent in our modern environment. The term diptych refers to the two images, one of an historical garden, the other of an industrial factory, which are superimposed upon each other, assuming the role of foreground and background in these photographs. The gardens are either English or Italian from the 17th, 18th or 19th centuries, and the factories were shot in France or Italy. However, the actual locations are not relevant. Despite the fact that Gardendiptychs represent imaginary landscapes, they remain wholly plausible, as we increasingly experience the effects of expanding urbanization. In fact, the juxtaposition of industrial scenes within a pastoral context is becoming all too familiar. The shadow of the factory looming over the garden hedge or monopolizing a countryside horizon seems pervasive and inevitable. In the end, the Gardendiptychs series reflects the confrontational state that exists between the extremes of progress versus preservation, or simply, nature versus expanding industrialization.

Gardendiptchs is a work which also depicts the conflict between epochs, as well as the evolution of attitudes towards nature, landscape, and our place in the environment. As nature and landscape are part of our collective culture, historic gardens were chosen to illustrate the rupture between the past and the present. They frame a dialogue between two opposing views of nature and landscape: one of refinement and poetry as found in the artistry of these gardens, and the other in the functionality and economy of industry. With their evocative aura of nostalgia, these gardens show how attitudes towards nature are coloured by our experiences, expectations, and memories. The ghosts of past landscapes remain present, whether in reality or simply in our memories, underlying the modern landscapes which surround us. The brutality of the industrialization of the countryside only serves to reinforce our nostalgia for past eras when landscape reflected a state of harmony with nature.