South of the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant, Jefferson County, Colorado 1976

This photograph, “South of the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant, Jefferson County, Colorado” was made by Robert Adams, probably with a large format camera, at an unknown date. Adams isn’t interested in a slick, beautiful image; instead, he makes photographs that show the unvarnished truth. The photograph has an all-over gritty texture. Look closely at the foreground, the dry dirt, and the tire tracks. The whole thing feels dry and dusty. Then your eye is pulled to the right, to the road and power lines. It is almost a classical landscape, but interrupted by the human imposition of technology. Think of Timothy O’Sullivan’s photographs of the American West, but dirtier, sadder and post-nuclear. The scene is bathed in light, but the light feels bleak. It's less about any one thing, and more about the whole scene being observed. The way we all exist in this landscape together. It's a reminder that art is often more about asking questions than providing answers.