For his series “Wastelands”, the professional photographer Simon Puschmann wanted to highlight the scope and permanence of trash produced by various metropolitan cities. By transforming garbage into an elegant exercise
of composition, form and line, the disposed waste begins to create an unusual portrait of
each respective place. Through each urban centre’s trash, a picture begins to take shape that reflects unique consumption patterns and habits. This series is intended to be a visual critique of the crisis our planet is facing.

Puschmann chose the technique known as “knolling” – a process of arranging objects at 90-degree angles and photographing them from above. By utilizing the same set up, the same lens, the same distance, the same surface and the same collection technique, a comparable series begins to form allowing us to objectively contrast and evaluate individual cities. Not only does this create a distinctive visual language and is symmetrically pleasing to the eye, using the subject matter of disposed trash creates a powerful and urgent juxtaposition.