Project Description

A series of large-scale, unique direct-positive photographs made on discarded 55- gallon oil drum lids is grounded in one of the most contentious issues of our time: the social, political and environmental landscape of the American oil industry. The creation of this series comes at a time when global energy consumption has reached a critical mass and the foreseeable effects of our changing climate are prevalent. These photographs reveal the industrial landscapes that have shaped our present way of thinking and living around these issues. 

This temporary exhibition is on view at Wilshire/Normandie Station as part of the Metro Art Lightbox Exhibition Program.

Artist Statement

“Photographing the sublime landscape of the American oil industry results in objects that are transformed into meditations on the history of photography as well as the history of this industry–all in the context of the current climate that surrounds our energy consumption.”

Ride + Consider

How do these images and landscapes make you think about resource extraction from land? 

• Artist Website
• What is direct-deposit photography? (Article, Journal of American Conservation)
• History of Oil in Los Angeles (Essay, STAND.LA)
• The States Project: Arizona (Article, Lenscratch.com)

About the Artist

DAVID EMITT ADAMS (b.1980) obtained his Bachelor of Fine Art from Bowling Green State University and a Master of Fine Art from Arizona State University. David’s photographs have been exhibited nationally and internationally including Phoenix Art Museum, Roswell Museum and Arts Center, Chrysler Museum of Art, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and Portland Art Museum. He is a recipient of an Arizona Commission on the Arts Research and Development Grant, the Clarence John Laughlin Award and Puffin Foundation Grant. His work is in the permanent collection of the Center for Creative Photography, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Museum of Photographic Arts San Diego, Ogden Museum of Southern Art, George Eastman Museum and Worcester Art Museum as well as numerous private collections.