Victoria Sambunaris

Victoria Sambunaris creates large-scale photographs of the American West that examine the intersections of modern civilization and the natural environment. Inspired by the intrepid nineteenth century photographers whose work helped to define our understanding of the region, Sambunaris embarks upon an extended, solitary road trip each year, capturing the American landscape with a large format, five-by-seven wooden field camera. Highly detailed and carefully composed, the resulting photographs present a visually refined portrait of a vast industrial terrain embedded within the high desert, grassy plains and estuarial corridors of the country.

 From 2009 to 2011, Sambunaris covered the two thousand mile extent of the border between the United States and Mexico in an attempt to understand the essence of the border culture and the divided landscape. A later project involved photographing the infrastructure and ecological implications of the energy industry in South Texas, and for her most recent project, from 2016-2018, Sambunaris focused her attention on the development, commerce and geology throughout Utah. Combining in-depth planning and research with a laborious mode of shooting and developing, sometimes waiting days for the right conditions, Sambunaris’ photographs communicate a deeply layered sense of place and a nuanced view of the complex issues surrounding American land use and management.