Burning Bush

Luther Gerlach, American, born 1960

Burning Bush, 2018

Luther Gerlach is an American artist whose work engages with the physical processes of photography and emphasizes the natural world. He created a series of photos during the 2017 Thomas Fire in California that he developed with acidic water composed of ashes and sulfur from hot springs at the fire’s origin point. The inclusion of the fire’s chemical remnants produces a hauntological effect, recreating the destruction and transforming the image with licks of color that appear flamelike. This ghost of fire paired with a desolate copse (reminiscent of Paul Nash’s horrific paintings of the barren Inverness Copse destroyed by WWI), brought to the viewer through a highly chemical process, encapsulates the deeper political and industrial issues related to environmental injustices like wildfires. Through his photos’ contents and their development techniques, Gerlach demonstrates the wildfire’s long-lasting consequences and its initial flash, in terms of both the burn and our attention. Label by Tori Erisman

A Fire Story, page 10

Brian Fies, American, born 1960

A Fire Story, page 10, 2019

A page from graphic artist Brian Fies’s graphic novel, A Fire Story, that provides insight on his personal journey as an artist and displaced person after his home burnt down in 2017. Before becoming a book in 2019, Fies published A Fire Story online, generating massive support for his work and for the aid in rebuilding his community affected by the fires. Fies chooses not to color any of the debris and wreckage that his small figure walks through, depicting Hell here as a place with much to avoid. The figure is not heading to a place of refuge either, but rather seems to be preserving the life inside himself by finding a path away from things that were. Despite the bleak text and imagery, the figure moves forward, observing and seeking a way out of Hell. Fies’s work reminds us that the implications of wildfire often prompt personal trauma and that ways we internalize loss are difficult to conceptualize even with photographic evidence. Label by Kristin Rheins

Stepping Stone Falls 3 Y3M1C2

Matthew Brandt, American, born 1982

Stepping Stone Falls 3 Y3M1C2, 2016

When the city of Flint, Michigan switched its water source to the local Flint River in April of 2014, its underprepared water treatment plant failed to treat the water correctly, leading to contamination by lead and dangerous bacteria to make its way into residents’ homes. Brandt’s photo series Waterfalls (Stepping Stone Falls) depicts the architecture of the Flint River dam behind the vivid yet ominous colors and patterns generated by their exposure to water from the Flint River. By using materials found on-location, Brandt both experiments with his artistic process and comments on the ongoing water crisis in Flint. Label by Sarah Roberts

This piece shows the Flint River Dam in Flint, Michigan. Brandt used the toxic river water to develop the image and create unique water marks on the paper. This piece was intended to be shown using a lightbox to emphasize the moment and vibrancy of the river. However, I believe this piece is compelling because it is a metaphor for the way in which America has viewed Flint. The bright colors are easily scanned over, but the deeper and industrial background of the polluted river being choked by the dam is murky. The real problem in this piece can easily be ignored if you aren’t looking closely. Similarly, the lack of clean drinking water in Flint is easily ignored by the public, especially as the 24-hour news cycle deems the story as last week’s headline. Label by Sam Dutilly

Street Art Globalization—How Street Art Became a Global Phenomenon

M. Felix, United Kingdom

Street Art Globalization—How Street Art Became a Global Phenomenon, 2015

This graphic poster is featured to exemplify how street art has served as a means of political and social expression around the world. This particular poster is ominous in character; it is meant to concisely convey its message in that there are few, if any other dimensions of the poster that might distract from the three central objects of the piece. The contrast between Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald’s smiling faces with the screaming child is dysphoric. This calls attention to the way that seemingly innocent societal structures and franchises can be damaging. Some of the two most well-known figures in the world that are American grown, detaining the child in the middle effectively portrays how American imperialism and cultural influence benefits from the degradation, harm, and exploitation of others. Label by Jordan Stofko