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Scrap Slag
Scrap Slag
Scrap Slag

Scrap Slag

Maker Szoradi, Stephen American, b.1968, Washingon, D.C.
Date2002
MediumGelatin silver print
Dimensionsimage: 13 7/8 in x 17 13/16 in; mat: 20 in x 24 in; paper: 16 in x 20 in
Credit LineGift of the artist
Object number2004:69
About the ArtistAfter making documentary-style portraits of steel workers, Stephen Szoradi embarked on the series Full Circle, which investigates the structure of the City of Chicago waste system and conveys the cyclical nature of its processes. In silver-gelatin prints, Szoradi obliquely addresses the various stages of refinement and reclamation, while the pictures themselves build in complexity, from the sparseness of a single drain, to visually complex labyrinths of geometric waterways made from concrete walls. In many works from the project, such as Waste Water (A) and (B), Szoradi uses a diptych or triptych format to reinforce themes of repetition or to play with expectations of sequence and progression in adjacent frames. At the same time, these pairings of similar images create a sense of formal rhythm and emphasize the structural qualities of these typically unseen places. Szoradi has also looked at the collection of raw materials and their subsequent transformation in photographs of slag and scrap metal heaps. Photographing these piles from a head-on vantage point and with a tight framing, he brackets out the surrounding environment and eliminates a sense of perspectival space. The resulting images resemble abstract, gestural compositions, while retaining the literal detail of the physical materials. Szoradi holds a BA in Photography and Architecture from Bennington College (1990) and an MFA in Photography from Columbia College Chicago (1997). He is a professor of photography at Columbia College Chicago.
Scrap
Szoradi, Stephen
1998, printed 2001
Scrap
Szoradi, Stephen
1998, printed 2001
Scrap
Szoradi, Stephen
2002
Scrap
Szoradi, Stephen
2000, printed 2001
Water Filtration Plant
Szoradi, Stephen
2000, printed 2002
Waste Water (A)
Szoradi, Stephen
2002
Waste Water (B)
Szoradi, Stephen
2000, printed 2002
Repeats: Archeology
Crane, Barbara
1975
Untitled, from the "House Pictures" series
Wessel Jr., Henry
1990, printed 1991
Axe, Wood, and Shroud
Althouse, Stephen
2003