David LaChapelle
Gas Shell, 2012
Chromogenic print
50x82.165 inches
In his ‘Gas’ series, LaChapelle places handmade gas stations within lush, overgrown tropical landscapes, evoking the sense of 20th-century relics reclaimed by nature, awaiting rediscovery in the future as forgotten artifacts.
In contrast, his ‘Land Scape’ series reimagines complex energy production sites as monumental structures, presenting them as temples to the petroleum that fuels modern life, even as they contribute to an increasingly uninhabitable
climate.
Glowing from countless points of lights, these surreal structures take on a cinematic, otherworldly quality—until the darker truths beneath them come into view. In ‘Gas, the viewer can hear the faint and ominous buzzing of flickering
lights, while Land Scape conjures a score of churning, steaming, and marching rhythms that might echo the workings of an Orwellian factory.
The childlike quality of each scene draws the viewer in, offering an illusion of reality from a distance. Yet, upon closer inspection, the purposeful, craft-like construction of these industrial figures becomes clear, reminding us of their
artificial origins.
In contrast, his ‘Land Scape’ series reimagines complex energy production sites as monumental structures, presenting them as temples to the petroleum that fuels modern life, even as they contribute to an increasingly uninhabitable
climate.
Glowing from countless points of lights, these surreal structures take on a cinematic, otherworldly quality—until the darker truths beneath them come into view. In ‘Gas, the viewer can hear the faint and ominous buzzing of flickering
lights, while Land Scape conjures a score of churning, steaming, and marching rhythms that might echo the workings of an Orwellian factory.
The childlike quality of each scene draws the viewer in, offering an illusion of reality from a distance. Yet, upon closer inspection, the purposeful, craft-like construction of these industrial figures becomes clear, reminding us of their
artificial origins.
DLC012/2025