Brandon Seidler by Cara McCarthy
“I think we tend to forget about the harm we are doing to the environment or we try not to think about it" (Mallonee).
The above quote was stated by photographer Brandon Seidler. Seidler attempts to capture the beauty of nature by taking pictures of the environment and surrounding landscapes of New York and his hometown state of New Jersey. However, Seidler is not a typical environmental photographer. What makes him so different from other photographers, is that not only does he take pictures of the environment, but he then taints the film of those photographs with the same chemical pollutants that are polluting each specific landscape in real life.
Seidler grew up in New Jersey and attended Ramapo College, also located in New Jersey, where he studied graphic design, communications, and photography (Burgess). His most well-known photography album is Impure which contains about 20 different images of the environment around New Jersey and New York all of which are tainted with some sort of chemical pollutants. Many of the photographs have an apocalyptic look to them or may appear to be photoshopped, however this is just the effect of the chemical pollutants. The chemical contaminants produce many different colors as well as textures on the developed film. In addition to being so different from other photographers, Brandon Seidler can also be classified as an artist of the Anthropocene.
What is the Anthropocene and what classifies art as art of the Anthropocene?
The Anthropocene is an emerging era recognized by many people such as scientists and historians in which human activity and our impact on the environment is the center of focus (Wilson 31). More specifically the Anthropocene is an era in which industrialization has destroyed the purity of many natural systems. According to an article titled “Climate Redux: Welcome to the Anthropocene” which was published in the journal of Issues in Science and Technology, “In this new era in the history of our planet, human activity is surfacing as one of the most important Earth systems, rivaling and stressing the natural systems that govern the planet’s habitability” (Allenby 38). The use of the term Anthropocene has increased significantly within the past years as climate change problems have become more severe and people are becoming more aware of the significant impact humans are having on the environment.
According to Jason Wilson in his article, "A Presence that Disturbs," "With our plastics, chemicals, radioactive residue and other forms of pollution, we are leaving a distinct sedimentary layer on the planet’s surface. Finally, with the carbon dioxide, methane, sulphur dioxide and other chemical by-products of our global food and industrial systems, we have changed the climate and, in doing so, altered the chemical composition of the oceans, the size of the polar ice caps and, slowly but steadily, the border between sea and land." This quote speaks to the fact that humans have had a significant impact on the environment through our actions and creations. What we may think of as innovative substances such as plastic or chemicals, is really not so innovative since they are coming back to cause many issues such as climate change and the chemical composition of the oceans. There is a bit of irony in the fact that humans create things in order to improve our lives, yet many of these same things come back to harm us and cause many issues that aren't so simple to fix.
Another way to think of the Anthropocene includes thinking of it as an era in which we have contaminated everything. For Brandon Seidler, the Anthropocene is characterized by the impurity of things such as water, air, and even land. More importantly, the human species are the ones who have contaminated it. The environment used to have a pure and pristine state, yet now everything is impure due to our pollution. There is now an ongoing crisis of impurity and contamination due to many of the products we use as humans such as Drano or hydrogen peroxide. In addition to individual consumers, industrial companies are also play a major role in impurifying our environment. Keep reading to learn how companies like Ford and General Electric have harmed the environment. The amount of contamination and chemical pollution caused by consumers and companies is a tragedy and action needs to be taken now if things are going to get better.
Now you may be wondering what this could possibly be a picture of or why this image appears so appaling or photoshopped. This is what Seidler's work looks like. While it did start as a normal looking photograph of the environment, once Seidler tainted it with a variety of chemical contaminants that were found in this area thanks to humans and other industrial companies, the chemicals caused the photograph to appear this way. After the film is tainted with the contaminants, it is scanned in a computer and this is the result.
His work is similar to what has happened in the environment. The environment started off as a pure, pristine, and clean place much like this image started out as a pure looking photo of the environment. However, once there was human interaction with the environment and we polluted it, it caused the landscapes to no longer be so pure, pristine, and clean. This is similar to Seidler's work because once he interacted with the pure looking photo, he caused them to appear impure and contaminated. Although on the surface many of these landscapes may not appear to be polluted, Seidler's photographs demonstrate that beneath the surface there is a huge problem with all the chemical contaminants that are there and just how significant the damage they are causing is.
Art provides an outlet for artists to express their concerns in regards to the Anthropocene. As a result, artists can lead people to thinking of a more ecologically sustainable future because art can persuade people to change their perceptions so they can think about their relationship to the environment. According to Eleanor Heartney in her article titled “Art for the Anthropocene Era,” artists have responded to the idea that people, not natural processes, determine our environment. Audiences respond to the increased attention given to biodiversity loss and the ways our landscape is physically changing. In a study conducted on communicating ecological issues through art it was found that visual arts can be useful in communicating scientific information and providing an atmosphere that is helpful in being exposed to the information. It was also found that the use of art to connect with people emotionally may be an effective way to gain support for problems like anthropogenic climate change. The arts can help convey scientific information that may be difficult to understand, provide insight into new ways of looking at issues, and reach people’s emotions (Curtis et al. 8).
Therefore, Anthropocene art should portray the negative effects human activity has had on the environment, while also provoking a sense of urgency in the audience that we need to start making changes now or nothing is going to get better. Anthropocene art should emphasize the fact that humans have caused this destruction, and it may be too late to restore the environment completely, but certainly much can be done to improve and stop the negative outcomes of human activity.
Being told about the harmful effects humans are having on the environment is one thing, but being able to directly see the impact of our actions is another. This can serve as a wake-up call to many people who may not be aware of just how much significant damage we have done to our environment. Humans are the problem since we are the ones who have caused so much environmental destruction. Humans are also the solution because it is up to us to start altering our actions and developing an awareness of how our actions are impacting the environment.
Why does Brandon Seidler count as an artist of the Anthropocene?
Brandon Seidler counts as an Anthropocene artists because his photographs are showing the direct impact humans are having on the environment and how we are altering the landscape especially through chemical pollutants. As previously mentioned, the Anthropocene for Seidler is characterized by the impurity of our environment that has been caused by consumers and industrial companies polluting it with chemical contaminants. He also qualifies as an artist of the Anthropocene because I think that if people saw his photographs, they would feel compelled to take action and either try to remove these pollutants from the environment or in the least be more conscious of how their actions are affecting the environment and what they can do to be more environmentally friendly.
Many people know that our oceans are polluted, but being able to see what these pollutants cause a piece of film to look like may alert people to the severity of these chemicals and how they are affecting our environment. His art points to the fact that humans are the ones responsible for this pollution. It is up to us as consumers to stop buying some of these items such as Drano because if we don’t buy them, then we can’t use them and they won’t end up somewhere such as a river where they cause pollution. Seidler’s work helps us to see the ways that events such as fertilizer runoff and chemical spillage are infiltrating natural spaces. It is often times difficult to physically assess the damage done by these manmade chemicals on the environment but Seidler's art helps us to visualize just how severe our actions are and how much these chemicals can affect the environment.
His photography album “Impure” suggests that one way the Anthropocene can be seen is as a crisis of purity. A crisis in which we as humans, and specifically industry, have ruined what would otherwise be considered pure and pristine landscapes. The title of his album speaks to our destruction of the environment. We have contaminated the landscapes around us and as a result, these landscapes are considered to be impure. They now contain chemical contaminants as well as other pollutants thanks to humans and industrial companies.
Examples of Seidler’s Work
The examples shown above are from different locations along the Hudson River. Polychlorinated biphenyl was flushed in this area for more than thirty years by General Electric Company and Seidler had to replicate this chemical by using Drano, paint thinner, and hydrogen peroxide (Mallonee).These photographs featured above are of the Barnegat Lighthouse in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey. This is one of the most heavily polluted beaches in New Jersey due to the rapidly increasing population in this area. In this area there are high levels of nitrogen due to heavy use of lawn fertilizers, air pollution, pet waste, and other suburban sources (Moore). Barnegat, New Jersey is also where Seidler currently resides so many of his photographs come from this area.
These final photographs shown, as well as majority of the other photographs in Siedler’s album Impure, are pictures of the environment in northern New Jersey showing the effects of a chemical truck spill on Route 287 where a truck spilled hundreds of gallons of industrial cleaning chemicals including methyl methacrylate, phosphoric acid, sodium hydroxide, and hydrogen peroxide (Burgess). Also, along Route 287 is a forest in Ringwood, New Jersey which has suffered the effects of this chemical truck spill. However, in addition to the destruction caused by this truck spill, this forest has suffered the effects of industrial companies as well. In the 1960s Ford Motor Company dumped sludge in this area (Mallonee). Some components of sludge include heavy metals, excess phosphorus, and excess nitrogen, all of which are harmful to the environment.
Where did Seidler come up with his inspiration for his album Impure?
Seidler has always had a fascination with the environment, in addition to art. He grew up in a part of New Jersey that was close to both the mountains and the ocean so he spent lots of time outdoors. He had an interest in showing unique combinations that clashed and contained bright and loud colors that also demonstrated the idea of worlds colliding (Burgess). When studying chemicals for a photography class in college he learned about a toxic spill that had occurred nearby years ago. In 1999, there was a chemical spill along Route 287 in northern New Jersey (Burgess). According to a New York Times article published shortly after the incident, it was noted that a truck spilled more than 100 gallons of industrial cleaning chemicals in the surrounding area including phosphoric acid, sodium hydroxide, hydrogen peroxide, caustic alkali, sodium hydroxide, and toxic methyl methacrylate. In addition, he was inspired by his sister who is a marine biologist, as well as his grandfather who is a chemical engineer (Brooks).
“I want my work to make people think. If this is the effect of these chemicals on a plastic piece of film, what is it doing to the environment we are polluting" (Mallonee)?
How does Seidler produce these visually appealing, yet also appalling, images?
Seidler took pictures of various areas that were affected by the chemical spill along Route 287. After he takes the pictures, he develops the film normally and then paints the negatives with the chemicals or submerges the negatives in a liquid containing the chemicals that were responsible for causing the environmental destruction. In addition, to painting and soaking the film, Seidler has tried spraying the chemicals onto the negatives and mixing the chemicals with the film in a sealed container which can cause the chemicals to become bubbly or frothy (Brooks). Once they dry, he scans them in a computer to make the final print. Many of the chemicals that he needed were available for purchase online or could be found in common household cleaning products. Seidler tries to use the exact chemicals that were spilled at each site, but some chemicals are too difficult to get ahold of so he has to replicate the chemicals by using other chemicals. His grandfather is a chemical engineer so he was crucial to the process in helping to replicate the chemical makeup of the toxic spill (Burgess). For example, in order to replicate polychlorinated biphenyl which was flushed in the Hudson River near New York City by General Electric Company for nearly 30 years, Seidler used common household items such as Drano, paint thinner, and hydrogen peroxide. Other chemicals he commonly uses in order to replicate specific chemicals include bleach, phosphates, and nitrates (Mallonee).
This video provides an overview of Seidler's work. It touches on how Seidler was inspired with the idea for his project, as well as demonstrating the process of tainting the film with the different chemical contaminants. The video provides support for Seidler as an Anthropocene artist since it demonstrates how Seidler is concerned with the human impact on the environment and how our consumer products are polluting many places. Our pollution through these chemical contaminants is causing places that were once considered pure, to now be "impure" and heavily contaminated.
Works Cited
Allenby, Braden. "Climate Redux: Welcome to the Anthropocene." Issues in Science & Technology, vol. 31, no. 3, Spring2015, pp. 37-39. EBSCOhost, libproxy.xu.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=102017299&login.asp&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Brooks, Katherine. “Chemical-Soaked Photographs Explore The Wild Realities Of Polluted Places.” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 31 Aug. 2015, www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/chemical-soaked-photographs-pollution-brandon-seidler_us_55e46c7fe4b0c818f6186e3a.
Burgess, Tom. “Impure Photography by Brandon Seidler.” The Latest Print and Design News, Solopress, 25 Sept. 2015, www.solopress.com/blog/photography/impure-photography-by-brandon-seidler/.
Curtis, David J., et al. "Communicating Ecology through Art: What Scientists Think." Ecology & Society, vol. 17, no. 2, June 2012, pp. 191-206. EBSCOhost, libproxy.xu.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=77928768&login.asp&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Heartney, Eleanor, et al. “Art for the Anthropocene Era.” Art for the Anthropocene Era -Magazine - Art in America, Art in America, 6 Feb. 2014, www.artinamericamagazine.com/news-features/magazine/art-for-the-anthropocene-era/.
“Impure Photography Kickstarter.” YouTube, YouTube, 29 July 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=tB3xADZU9lw.
Mallonee, Laura. “Photos of Polluted Scenery—Tainted With the Same Pollutants.” Wired, Conde Nast, 30 Sept. 2015, www.wired.com/2015/09/brandon-seidler-impure/.
“Metro News Briefs: New Jersey; Chemical Spill on I-287.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Aug. 1999, www.nytimes.com/1999/08/24/nyregion/metro-news-briefs-new-jersey-chemical-spill-on-i-287-ties-up-traffic-for-hours.html.
Moore, Kirk. “Where Barnegat Bay's Pollution Really Comes From.” Asbury Park Press, Asbury Park Press, 21 Aug. 2014, www.app.com/story/news/investigations/watchdog/investigations/2014/08/21/barnegat-bay-pollution-source/14391617/.
Wilson, Jason. "A Presence That Disturbs." Overland, no. 220, Spring2015, pp. 19-23. EBSCOhost, libproxy.xu.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=109995249&login.asp&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
