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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Nine: Composition -- putting it together > Abandoned Power Plant, Kennecott Mine, Kennecott, Alaska, 2003
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16-JUL-2002

Abandoned Power Plant, Kennecott Mine, Kennecott, Alaska, 2003

The geometric patterns created by sunlight striking the rooftops of Kennecott's vast but empty power plant recall the glory days of early 20th Century heavy industry. These patterns are also known as rhythmic repetition -- another method I use in organizing my photographs. In this case I use three different forms of rhythm: repeating roof lines carry the eye through the picture from front to back, repeating diagonals create a series of implied dynamic visual thrusts from corner to corner, and finally, a series of vertical smoke stacks marches across the top of the frame in varying sizes. By creating these rhythms within my frame, I tried to evoke the ghost of a great industrial cathedral slowly decaying deep in the mountains of Alaska. Its time ran out when the last copper train left Kennecott in 1938.

Canon PowerShot G2
1/200s f/4.0 at 21.0mm full exif

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Phil Douglis28-Mar-2005 01:54
Another fascinating analysis from Catriona! You are the first to comment on this image, and I am glad you find it works as an industrial landscape because of its geometric design. I intended this image to represent all you say it does. It is man made, a series of repeating lines, angles, and diagonals -- just like industry itself. The elements repeat themselves with assembly line precision, just as this building's designers intended. It is, in essence, a cathedral of sorts. Only instead of symbolizing the human spirit, it represents the efficiencies and necessities of industry. It is the exact opposite of nature. Made by man, for the use of man. And created as an affront to nature -- its giant stacks once belched black smoke into what is now a blue Alaskan sky. No, I did not intend this image for your wall, but I did create and organize it to stress its ruin, its purpose, and its meaning. Thank you for so lucidly summing up its expressive qualities for us, Catriona.
Guest 28-Mar-2005 00:21
No gentle curves in this image Phil! I find it interesting that many nature images are composed using a gentle, often s-shaped curve, gently guiding and directing the viewer's attention from one point in the image to another. This industrial landscape is composed of straight diagonal and vertical lines - even the cables which fall on the roof are straight! The viewer is guided more abruptly through the image. The diagonals lead us up to the broken windows and up to the towering vertical smoke stacks. Shadows on the sides of the buildings also add depth, making the buildings seem large and powerful. The buildings stand out against the clear blue sky - a symbol of thier importance in times gone by. I like your use of repetition as it provides form to the image and also implies 'man-made' and 'industrial'. Not the type of picture I would have on my wall Phil, but still a very powerful one (no pun intended!).
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