1. By Alexander Matsikoudis
Richard Misrach
By Alexander Matsikoudis

3. Biographical Infomation
Richard Misrach (born in Los Angeles, California in 1949) is an American photographer "firmly identified with the introduction of color to 'fine' [art] photography in the 1970s, and with the use of large- format traditional cameras.”
Mismatch is widely recognized as "one of this century’s most internationally acclaimed photographers.“
He is perhaps best known for his depictions of the deserts of the American west, and for his series documenting the changes brought to bear on the environment by various man-made factors such as urban sprawl, tourism, industrialization, floods, fires, petrochemical manufacturing, and the testing of explosives and nuclear weapons by the military
In a 2011 interview, Misrach noted: "My career, in a way, has been about navigating these two extremes - the political and the aesthetic." 

4. The Focus of His Work
Misrach is committed to showing the complex relationship between man and place.
Curator Anne Wilkes Tucker writes that Misrach's practice has been "driven [by] issues of aesthetics, politics, ecology, and sociology.“
His magnum opus is considered to be Desert Cantos, a project that has spanned 40 years and counting
Describing Misrach’s philosophy, Tracey Taylor of the New York Times wrote that his “images are for the historical record, not reportage.“
Misrach has had one-person exhibitions at the National Gallery of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Centre Pompidou, Paris, among others.

5. Desert Cantos
San Gorgino Pass, 1981

6. Desert Fire #43, 1981

7. Don & Barbara, Salton Sea, 1985

8. Submerged Trailer Home, Salton Sea, 1985

9. Road Blockade and Pyramids, 1989

10. Aerial Target ("Dart"), Wendover Air Base, Utah, 1990

11. Battleground Point #2, 1999

12. Mono Lake #2, 1999

13. Border Cantos, Wall, Browsnville, Texas, 2015

14. Border Cantos, Normandy Wall Near Ocotillo, California, 2015

15. Border Cantos, Wall, Near Los Indios, Texas, 2015

16. Golden Gate Bridge, , 4:01 pm, 2000

17. Golden Gate Bridge, , 4:01 pm, 2000

18. Golden Gate Bridge, , 5:18 pm, 1998

19. Golden Gate Bridge, , 7:31AM, 1999

20. Golden Gate Bridge, , 7:50 pm, 1998

21. Golden Gate Bridge, , 4:55 pm, 2000

22. Golden Gate Bridge, , 5:25 pm, 2000

23. Golden Gate Bridge, , 5:20 pm, 1998

24. Golden Gate Bridge, 11.10.00, 12:50-3:40 am, 2000

25. Petrochemical America
Helicopter Returning From Deep Water Horizon Spill, Venice, Louisiana, 2010

26. Baptist Church, River Road, St. James, Louisiana, 1998

27. Nottoway Plantation, Interior, Louisiana, 1998

28. Roadside Vegetation and Orion Refining Corporation, Good Hope, Louisiana , 1998

29. Holy Rosary Cemetery and Union Carbide Complex, Taft, Louisiana , 1998

30. Batture, North of Port Allen, Louisiana, 1998

31. Cypress Tree, Alligator Bayou, 1998

32. Abandoned Trailer Home, Mississippi River, near Dow Chemical Plant, Plaquemine, Louisiana, 1998

33. Hazardous Waste Containment Site, Dow Chemical Corporation, Plaquemine, Louisiana, 1998

34. iPhone Studies
IPS #6829 (Scrub #17), 2014

35. IPS #9323 (Scrub #7), 2013

36. IPS #6891 (Scrub #20), 2014

37. IPS #5981 (Scrub #5), 2012

38. IPS #0687 (Scrub #9), 2013

39. IPS #174, 2011

40. IPS #9869 (Please turn off lights), 2011

41. IPS#180 , 2011

42. IPS #8110 , 2011

43. Reflecting on Misrach’s Work
Clearly, Richard Misrach is one of the most legendary photographers of the last 50 years.
The way in which he is able to capture the essence of a place, and within the photo tell the story of that setting, is remarkable.
He is not only capable of telling narratives with his series, but also of capturing astounding moments due to the perfect combination of the right angles, lighting, and weather.

44. Le Fin