Lewis Baltz
1945–2014 · United States / Europe
The impersonal surfaces of modern development.
The story
Lewis Baltz photographed industrial zones, ordinary buildings and changing landscapes. Associated with New Topographics, he worked in groups of images and favoured a seemingly detached description. The New Industrial Parks Near Irvine, California highlights the walls, doors and openings of commonplace architecture. His later investigations also address infrastructure and technological spaces, in both black and white and colour.
Understanding the work
Read façades as arrangements of lines, then ask which activities remain invisible. The absence of people can itself tell us something about how a place is organised.
Key works and series
The New Industrial Parks Near Irvine, California; Nevada; Park City.
Sources & further exploration
Works in collections.
6 recordsPhotographs to explore on museum and library websites, with titles, dates and processes. Each link opens the collection record and its image where one is available.
