Richard Misrach

Richard Misrach's work is similar to mine in his concept of how we have a large hand in the environment. We effect how it looks, yet we never stop to notice the absurdity of this. I also have been interested in his work because I am very drawn to the style in which he shoots. His work is the complete opposite of mine in the sense of aesthetics. While mine is extremely dark with high contrast, his work has a much softer and lighter look to it.

Biography:
"Richard Misrach (born in Los Angeles, California in 1949) is an American photographer known for his photographs of human intervention in landscapes.
Misrach graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1971. He first started photographing with a 35mm camera to foster social change. Since the late 1970s he has photographed using an 8x10 camera and color film. Misrach has one child, Jacob and lives in Berkeley, California."(Robert Mann Gallery)

Misrash is well known for his landscapes that show and obvious human hand in them such as tire tracks in a dessert and crowds of people on a beautiful beach. His most popular work, Dessert Cantos beautifully mixes this with soft lighting.

Quotes:
"Misrach's photography is sometimes referred to as cultural landscape photography as it shows human intervention in the landscape." (Robert Mann Gallery)

"As interesting and provocative as the cultural geography might be, the desert may serve as the backdrop for the problematic relationship between man and the environment. The human struggle, the successes and failures, the use and abuse, both noble and foolish, are readily apparent in the desert. Symbols and relationships seem to arise that stand for the human condition itself. It is a simple, if almost incomprehensible equation: the world is as terrible as it is beautiful, but when you look more closely, it is as beautiful as it is terrible. We must maintain constant vigilance, to protect the world from ourselves, and to embrace the world as it exists." -Richard Misrach

Artist does not have a website

Review

Gallery

"Biography: Richard Misrach | Robert Mann Gallery." ARTINFO - The Premier Site for News about Art and Culture around the World. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. <http://www.artinfo.com/galleryguide/20291/6826/6306/robert-mann-gallery-new-york/artist/richard-misrach/biography/>.