Richard Misrach, American
Norco Cumulus Cloud, Shell Oil Refinery, Norco, Louisiana, 1998 (print 2012)
Richard Misrach’s photograph depicts a seemingly natural environment that hides the devastation of producing oil. In the distance is an oil refinery, polluting and harming Louisiana's economy, ecology, and people. Misrach composes a powerful photograph centering a Norco Cumulus cloud, which appears natural yet is toxic and made of volatile hydrocarbons from refining oil. This toxic cloud is relatively far from the refinery but still incredibly toxic, making this area in the south live up to its name, “Cancer Alley,” as its residents breathe in chemicals causing repertory health issues. Worldwide, communities that work and live by oil refineries live in environmental hazards manipulated by companies and their governments. Label by Clarissa Cantacuzene
While at first glance, this photo captures a near symmetrical natural landscape in Norco, Louisiana, the backstory and further considerations reshape the initial impression. The large cloud present in the photograph, despite seeming naturally occuring, is actually the result of pollution. At the vanishing point lies the Shell Oil Refinery, the culprit of this pollution. The pollution is disguised by the seemingly mundace and harmless, a call to “slow violence” which is invisible, but nonetheless, disproportionately lethal to minority communities, especially those residing in this part of Louisiana that is referred to as “Cancer Alley,” whose name and reputation precedes itself. Label by Courtney Hand