De retour à Pékin, je me suis trouvé par hasard dans une exposition d’Edward Burtynsky, un photographe canadien, à la Paris-Beijing Photo Gallery . Ma première connaissance de lui vient du documentaire Manufactured Landscapes . Ses images choquantes extériorisent notre influence perturbante sur l’environnement. Il a pris plusieurs collections de photos en Chine. Les éléments bruts caractérisés dans ses photos marquent nos traces, parfois indésirables, sur notre planète. De plus, Burtynsky a été commandé à photographier le projet du Barrage des Trois-Gorges. Ce dernier mesure deux kilomètres de large et monte jusqu’à 185m de haut.

Apart from the Three Gorges Dam, his numerous works on China covered, among other subjects, manufacturing, urban development and recycling. As I was watching the displacement of people for the construction of the dam as shown in Manufactured Landscapes played on site, I regretted that I did not have a chance to visit the villages and cities, all of which will definitely be submerged in water. Like many people, I am perplexed by this huge construction project, but "taming the water" (治水), as in solving the problem of flooding, has a long legend in Chinese history. On the other hand, if you never really thought about how we consume, entertain or live would shape the environment, a look at his photos will definitely get you thinking. For his striking photos on the dam, on shipbreaking and much more, visit edwardburtynsky.com.