Colorful and minimal, George Byrne’s gorgeous photography takes inspiration from modernist artworks as well as the New Topographics movement. As a result, the images have a distinctive quality; they look like abstract paintings that recreate parts of a city, taking the viewer on a journey through a vibrant but serene landscape. Sun-drenched buildings in shades of red or pink complement a clear blue sky. Shadows accentuate pastel hues. The quality of the light, soft and bright at the same time, provides clues to the identity of this urban landscape: the unmistakable, sunny LA.
As George Byrne explains, the city pulsates with light and color. “The bright yellow stucco of drug stores throughout Southern California. The beautiful molded concrete shapes of urban foot paths. The fire engine red strips along all the pavements across LA. The canary yellow bollards that punctuate everything everywhere. The pink and blue awnings. The rich blue black shadows that drift cat and mouse across all the surfaces all day.”
A must-see show for art and photography lovers alike, the New Order exhibition opens at the Olsen Gruin gallery on New York’s 30 Orchard Street. It runs from the 15th of September until October 9th 2017. Photographs© George Byrne.