Maya Genis

This photo by Jeff Wall exhibits a wide variety of environmental elements. I chose this image because of its tension and the discomfort it seems to drive out of the viewer. The setting of a cemetary contradicts the conventional view of the beautiful, serene environment, something which is significant to understand--the multiple facets and temperaments of our environment. This photo draws my attention to the locations and emotions (i.e., mourning) which are usually marginalized in environmental art, in favor of inviting tropics and quiet cabins by the lake. While foliage is an obvious marker of an environmental presence, the trees and grass in this portrait are foregrounded by the grave and its contents. It is as if we see a cycle at work---life in the lingering trees in the top quarter of the photo and the preparation for death in the bottom quarter. The blending of comfort and discomfort, life and death is particularly illustrated by the aquatic life paradoxically floating in the newly-made grave. The starfish have ironically crowded a human grave which speaks to the hierarchy of the food chain and the way in which humans are traditionally expected to have separate arenas for themselves. Also I am reminded in this photo that spaces of death can and often are transformed into spaces for life, which is an odd relief to find in this fairly maudlin photo.
This photo also combines organic and man-made objects. While there are trees at the top of the photo, the bottom includes a rubber sheath and a hammer. The intermingling of the aesthetic and the functional in this work reflects the assortment of uses we find for the environment. It is at once scenery (landscape) and an instrument (grave site), which may not resolve the question of exploitation of its resources, but at least candidly exposes that tension. It is also fascinating to note the absence of humans in this complex narrative. We can imagine a myriad of stories unfolding in this photo, none of which need to be explained or dominated by a human "character." Ultimately, this work dynamically investigates the complexity of the world around us, by juxtaposing elements, excavating settings and transposing species to strange locales. Most importantly, Wall's photo challenges the celebration of the idyllic and in a seemingly radical move, elevates the dismal (here, a suprisingly inhabited grave).