Chris Jordan (artist)
Encyclopedia
Chris Jordan is an artist based in Seattle, Washington who is best known for his large scale works depicting mass consumption and waste, particularly garbage. He has been called "the 'it' artist of the green movement".
, where his father was a businessman and a photographer on the side, and Jordan later said that he was "filled with regret" that he could not practice his hobby photography
full time. Jordan was going to attend UC Santa Barbara, where he was going to study music, but instead transferred to the University of Texas at Austin
to be with his wife, who was in graduate school there. He then attended law school "for all the wrong reasons," including a wrongful arrest at a young age, and then worked as a corporate lawyer. In the meantime, he spent all his free time and money on photography. He moved to Seattle because of its reputation as an interesting city that was near climbable mountains. After ten years of practicing law, Jordan resigned from the bar, removing his safety net, in order to become a full-time photographer. Early successes, including major shows in New York
and Los Angeles
, propelled his career.
and mass consumption, a serendipitous technique which started when he visited an industrial yard to look at patterns of color and order. His industrious passion for conservation and awareness has brought much attention to his photography in recent years. Jordan uses everyday commonalities such as a plastic cup and defines the blind unawareness involved in American consumerism. His work, while often unsettling, is a bold message about unconscious behaviors in our everyday lives, leaving it to the viewer to draw conclusions about the inevitable consequences which will arise from our habits.
Jordan's work can be grouped in the following series:
Life
Jordan grew up in ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, where his father was a businessman and a photographer on the side, and Jordan later said that he was "filled with regret" that he could not practice his hobby photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
full time. Jordan was going to attend UC Santa Barbara, where he was going to study music, but instead transferred to the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
to be with his wife, who was in graduate school there. He then attended law school "for all the wrong reasons," including a wrongful arrest at a young age, and then worked as a corporate lawyer. In the meantime, he spent all his free time and money on photography. He moved to Seattle because of its reputation as an interesting city that was near climbable mountains. After ten years of practicing law, Jordan resigned from the bar, removing his safety net, in order to become a full-time photographer. Early successes, including major shows in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, propelled his career.
Work
Many of Jordan's works are created from photographs of garbageWaste
Waste is unwanted or useless materials. In biology, waste is any of the many unwanted substances or toxins that are expelled from living organisms, metabolic waste; such as urea, sweat or feces. Litter is waste which has been disposed of improperly...
and mass consumption, a serendipitous technique which started when he visited an industrial yard to look at patterns of color and order. His industrious passion for conservation and awareness has brought much attention to his photography in recent years. Jordan uses everyday commonalities such as a plastic cup and defines the blind unawareness involved in American consumerism. His work, while often unsettling, is a bold message about unconscious behaviors in our everyday lives, leaving it to the viewer to draw conclusions about the inevitable consequences which will arise from our habits.
Jordan's work can be grouped in the following series:
- Intolerable Beauty: Portraits of American Mass Consumption (2003-2006) A series of large format photographs 2005 depicting the magnitude of America's waste and consumption.
- In Katrina’s Wake: Portraits of Loss from an Unnatural Disaster (2005) A series of photographs taken in 2005 depicting the aftermath of Hurricane KatrinaHurricane KatrinaHurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
. - Running The Numbers I: An American Self Portrait (2006-2009) A series of photographic mosaics depicting visualizations of statistics related to America's consumerism, social problems, and addictions.
- "Running the Numbers II: Portraits of global mass culture" (2009-2010) A series of photographic mosaics depicting visualizations of statistics showing the magnitude of global consumerism.
- "Midway: Message from the Gyre" (2009-ongoing) A series of photographs depicting rotting carcasses of baby Laysan albatrossesLaysan AlbatrossThe Laysan Albatross, Phoebastria immutabilis, is a large seabird that ranges across the North Pacific. This small two-tone gull-like albatross is the second most common seabird in the Hawaiian Islands, with an estimated population of 2.5 million birds, and is currently expanding its range to new...
filled with plastic. These birds nest on Midway AtollMidway AtollMidway Atoll is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, near the northwestern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, about one-third of the way between Honolulu, Hawaii, and Tokyo, Japan. Unique among the Hawaiian islands, Midway observes UTC-11 , eleven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and one hour...
and are being fed plastic by their parents, who find floating plastic in the middle of the ocean and mistake it for food. This is a part of an ongoing arts and media project called Midway Journey, which has its own website.
See also
- Of All The People In All The WorldOf All The People In All The WorldOf All The People In All The World, also known as The Rice Show, is an art installation and performance, by the Stan's Cafe Theatre Company, which utilises 112 tonnes of dry rice to represent the world's population, with one grain for each person .Individual piles of rice represent various...
- an art installation depicting similar statistics, using piles of rice.
External links
- Official website
- Website for the Midway Journey project
- Video: Chris Jordan presents his Midway work at Pop!Tech
- TED Talks: Chris Jordan pictures some shocking stats at TEDTED (conference)TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
in 2008 - Video slide show showing dead albatrosses filled with plastic on Midway AtollMidway AtollMidway Atoll is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, near the northwestern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, about one-third of the way between Honolulu, Hawaii, and Tokyo, Japan. Unique among the Hawaiian islands, Midway observes UTC-11 , eleven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and one hour...
.