Henrik Spohler - Flatlands

Flatlands is a photographic examination of landscape in the very country, where the genre of landscape painting was developed in the 17th century. Today, the Netherlands is the most densely populated country in Europe, crisscrossed by a complex network of roads-canals and railroads. Seemingly endless industrial parks along the traffic routes characterise the landscape and indicate economic prosperity. Every square meter of land is used, every cubic meter of water is integrated into a system of dams, locks and canals. The country, once considered marshland difficult to live on, now symbolises the radical transformation of the environment by man. Spohler and his images demonstrate how a cultural landscape, marked by complex historical, economic and social references, can be read and represented.