La Redoute, Lille, France Possibly 1989 - 2006

Curator: Lewis Baltz, a key figure in the New Topographics movement, may have created this photograph, titled "La Redoute, Lille, France" sometime between 1989 and 2006. Editor: It's…clinical, almost unsettling. All these blue and gray machines dominate the frame, arranged with cold precision. It makes me think of outdated tech and obsolete processes. Curator: The image highlights Baltz’s interest in late capitalist landscapes. His photographs often depicted the banal realities of industrial and commercial spaces and questioned the narratives of progress embedded in modern architecture and infrastructure. This was a significant shift in photography in the late 20th century. Editor: Look at the floor tiles. They really emphasize the geometric quality and the flatness of the image. It gives this overall feel of artificiality – a designed space, perhaps for maximum efficiency. How does that artificiality function in the world outside of these walls? Curator: Exactly. Baltz critiques how modern technology creates alienated spaces detached from the natural world. His lens captures the impersonal environments that serve corporate or bureaucratic functions. I am intrigued that these kinds of images take on new layers of meaning in the 21st century when seen with hindsight. Editor: And look at the overhead view of pipes and conduits on the ceiling. It's as though even the air conditioning system is saying this is purely a system and a means for efficient working practice. Curator: Yes, and you also see this image engages with a shift that was occurring in art circles as well. By the 1980s and 1990s digital tools were having their advent in art. This particular image captures those technological developments that affect labor relations, data processing, and the creation of information that permeates our everyday existence. Editor: I am compelled to think about this photograph, what sort of processes were involved to arrive to this result. So much technical work going on! Curator: Baltz encourages viewers to consider the human cost. By showing these functional environments and highlighting repetitive elements and desolation he unveils a socio-political dimension in spaces. Editor: So in some ways the photograph seems to say "This is all you need to know" as it relates to this world! Curator: I agree, it’s both beautiful and bleak. It shows a specific time that is worth considering!