Erin Rieman along the Siuslaw River, Oregon, from the series Sawdust Mountain
2007
Over the course of four years, Eirik Johnson, a Seattle native now based in Massachusetts, returned to the Northwest to photograph the timber, fishing, and logging industries as well as the communities that surround them. Johnson traveled to Northern California, Oregon, and Washington to reengage with the landscapes of the region and meet individuals, including Erin Rieman pictured here, who had a story to tell. Several of his photographs, including Weyerhaeuser Sorting Yard, recall the expansive views of Carleton Watkins’ photographs of the Columbia River (ca. 1916) exhibited in Beauty and Bounty. With the span of a century between these artists’ work, their juxtaposition offers a fine counterpoint. Whereas Watkins presented a virgin landscape and a view of nature uncomplicated by human impact, Johnson works from a different perspective. He looks to tease out the interconnectedness between nature, the individual and the region’s industries.
"I met Erin Rieman clearing and burning debris outside an old bait and tackle store on the Siuslaw River in coastal Oregon. He had come to Oregon from his native Hawaii to make a fresh start. His plan was to rebuild the tackle store to serve coastal sport fisherman. Before I left, Erin handed me a bag of frozen Matsutake mushrooms he had collected from the nearby forest." (Eirik Johnson, 2007)
Archival pigment print
Gift of the artist
2009.7.2
Provenance: The artist
Photo: Courtesy of the artist
