The Field by Colin Smith (Baltimore, MD)

The Field Colin Smith (Baltimore, MD) Photo printed on Hahnemühle Baryta Paper, 20” H x 26” W x 2” D Artwork: Mine fire steam blows over a rolling landscape during a chilly 10 degree morning. The steam is blowing over a ghost forest, some of the trees still standing, others fallen, long dead and burnt from the underground mine fire. This photo is from the series “Exsanguination.” The series has been a 17-year project that explores the long-term effects of the coal mining industry on towns and the environment in central and northern Pennsylvania. These fissures originated from a mine fire that started in 1915, which continue to burn to this very day. Artist Statement: My photographs are part of a long-term project titled The New FSA Project, which revisits locations documented during the Great Depression by photographers of the Farm Security Administration (FSA). By returning to these sites, the work examines how these landscapes and the communities shaped by them have evolved. This installment focuses on the former coal regions of central Pennsylvania, once photographed by FSA photographers. Built around the coal industry, many of these towns have faced decline as energy demands and economic priorities have shifted. The photographs intentionally exclude human figures, allowing the landscape to reveal traces of industry and its aftermath. Underground mine fires, some burning for more than a century, mark the environmental cost of extraction. While coal once powered growth and prosperity, its legacy remains embedded in the land. This work reflects on how industry, environment, and history continue to shape the American landscape today.