Centre Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire, Geneva, Switzerland Possibly 1989 - 2006

Lewis Baltz made this image, Centre Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire, Geneva, Switzerland, a kind of portrait of place, using photography. It is quiet but commanding. Looking at the cool blues and grays, the composition of large, boxy shapes, I imagine Baltz might have been thinking about how to frame not just the technology, but the very environment where scientific exploration happens. It is the kind of space where the future is being made! The light is so even, so diffused; I can imagine him carefully choosing the right moment to capture that quality. Think about all that calculation, all the precise planning. And then there's the final click, the decisive act of capturing the image. Photography is an act of framing—but also one of excluding. What is outside of the frame? The conversation between artists continues as we all learn from each other. Looking is a creative act.