Lewis Baltz

Artist and photographer Lewis Baltz first gained prominence as a central figure in the New Topographics movement of the late 1970s, an influential photographic genre which highlighted, among other things, the effect of human and industrial intervention on the landscape of the American West. Like many other New Topographics artists, Baltz's work is focused on seeking out beauty both in and among detritus and desolation. His 1977 work In Nevada juxtaposes panoramic views of vast horizon lines with photographs of trailer parks, construction sites, and other natural spaces that have fallen prey to urban influence. Likewise, his series 81-91 Sites of Technology showcases the locations where technical research takes place for large corporations such as Mitsubishi and Toshiba. Baltz's works have been exhibited in such prestigious institutions as Paris's Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art.