Confluence - Luke Erickson

Luke Erickson’s photographs of the great rivers of Minnesota—Mississippi, Minnesota, St. Croix—carry the viewer along, like Huck Finn on his raft, through a series of complex illuminations. The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus said that you can’t step into the same river twice. A river by its nature is flowing and ever changing. Photography may seem inimical to this flow, since it tears a moment from time’s continuum. Erickson presents us with still images in each case depicting a scene of marvelous serenity and liquid mercury reflections of light. Their sheer formal beauty catches our attention. –Elizabeth Walden, Professor, English and Cultural Studies, Bryant University, and co-director of the Westbrook Artist’s Site (WAS)

This collection of photographs highlights the historical, economic, and social importance of the two rivers, the Mississippi and Minnesota, and serves as a call to observe, preserve, and protect our watersheds. These photographs are also, specifically, a polemic about the importance of landscape photography and a meditation on the mythology of the American West, the effects of suburban expansion, the American Dream, and the exploitation of natural resources.

Luke is a fiscal year 2015 recipient of an Artist Initiative Grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.