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Edward Burtynsky — Shipbreaking #38, Chittagong, Bangladesh
Edward Burtynsky

Shipbreaking #38, Chittagong, Bangladesh

A large-scale chromogenic print by Edward Burtynsky depicting the industrial shipbreaking yards of Chittagong, Bangladesh, where massive decommissioned vessels are dismantled by hand along a vast stretch of coastline. The image captures the striking tension between human labor and industrial scale, as workers appear dwarfed by the enormous steel hulls being systematically reduced to raw materials. Burtynsky's signature aerial or distanced perspective transforms the scene of environmental and industrial complexity into an image of haunting, almost abstract beauty.

Medium
Chromogenic print.

🔨 Auction Lot

Photographs

November 18, 2014

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About this work

Edward Burtynsky, Shipbreaking #38, Chittagong, Bangladesh

A large-scale chromogenic print by Edward Burtynsky depicting the industrial shipbreaking yards of Chittagong, Bangladesh, where massive decommissioned vessels are dismantled by hand along a vast stretch of coastline. The image captures the striking tension between human labor and industrial scale, as workers appear dwarfed by the enormous steel hulls being systematically reduced to raw materials. Burtynsky's signature aerial or distanced perspective transforms the scene of environmental and industrial complexity into an image of haunting, almost abstract beauty.

Medium
Chromogenic print.
Seen at
Phillips, New York, London, Hong Kong

Related themes

Ships, Industrial, Canadian, Bold, Color Photography, Documentary, Photograph, Landscape, Chromogenic Print, Contemporary

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