Rueben Gonzales

The photographic body of work Counterpoint The Climb, is an on-going body of contemporary work that is an extension of the New Topographics discourse. However, in its historical connection to past work, it does not deny emotional sentiment in its creation, nor does it deny the emotion it might instill in the viewer. The human-made change presented in the images does not only represent exploitation of the land, but inevitably causes similar emotional turmoil to humanity itself with the realization that man versus nature is a connection that can never be cut. To emphasize this, the dramatic or sublime is not avoided. The use of both the expansive daytime and moody night sky, which comprise large portions of the images, act as an untouched counterpoint to human’s creation of these once and still hopeful mausoleums. Each image culminating in a metaphorical perfection humanity tries to build towards, but always fails to reach.

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The images investigate emotion and memory using traditional black and white imagery as a counterpoint to the overload and pace of production of contemporary photographs. The black and white aesthetic lends itself to memory and nostalgia, allowing for less leading narrative, and more room for personal interpretation of the images. These images will change as the landscape changes and are influenced as such.