Rice Terraces (Laohuzui II), Yunnan, China, 2013

David Burdeny initiated his career with the Jennifer Kostuik Gallery in 2001 and has been exhibiting his images from the world over, including Antarctica, Iceland, Brazil, China, Burma, Cambodia, France, Italy, Canada and the USA. Known for his finely composed photographs, Burdeny has spent the past 25 years exploring a variegated photographic Landscape ranging from minimal seascapes, ornate European interiors to abstract aerial images. Widely collected in Canada, the USA, Asia and Europe, the sheer beauty of David’s images has firmly placed him within the realm of Canada’s most sought after photo-based artists. Burdeny has an innate curiosity for new subjects and themes, producing over 20 themed photographic series. Be it mounting a camera beneath a self-built drone, shooting from the deck of an Antarctic bound icebreaker, or waiting for an ocean tide to advance, he faithfully embeds his own formal signature into each and every image, further expressing a life long passion for the built environment and the camera’s interpretation of it.

David Burdeny’s Masters in Architecture and Interior Design background combined with his upbringing in the vast Canadian prairies provides the template for his keen technical ability, enduring patience and minimalist aesthetic.

The Hani minority first established these terraces roughly 2,500 years ago. Passed from generation to generation, each group of terraces is maintained year round by hand. Despite being nearly an eight-hour drive from the nearest major city, the area has in recent years been transformed into a major tourist destination. On any given day, I was aware I could find myself shoulder to shoulder with hundreds of fellow photographers jockeying for a sunrise position three hours in advance. However, the week I spent there, Yunnan was paired with some of the coldest, wettest and foggiest weather in over a decade. I found myself strangely alone most of the time.  For nearly five days straight, I spent hours staring into a dense white cloud waiting for the landscape below to appear. Disappointingly, the clouds and fog never broke. Then, on my last day with only 1/2 hour of light left, the fog began to lift for a few minutes and I took these frames before the sun set below the mountains.

-David Burdeny