Paradise/Paradox.

Paradise/Paradox. Photographs by Tom Fischer. Legends Publishing, 2009. 108 pp., 61 black & white illustrations, 12¼x9¼". Images from photo-eye.

Book description:

"This collection of sixty-one photographs includes images of places that are revered for their perfection of form, historic cultural landscapes, and views of paradise lost. Tom Fischer has envisioned each with the greatest of care in hopes of finding beauty in truth.

Through his pictures and essays Fischer presents us with a great paradox of modern life: that the driving human desire to find paradise often leads to the destruction of the place we love the most. Thousands of tourists visiting a place like the Yosemite Valley alters it to such a degree that it is no longer paradise. Our recognition that we can't achieve utopian experience has led to everything from theme parks to the private gardens of the wealthy. For many, the afterlife is the only hope of paradise.

Fischer acknowledges that the earth's processes are so complex that it is next to impossible to tell if our attempts to save the planet are a gift of a curse. Recognizing this has led him to assume the role of observer rather than theorist in his studies of the land. Those seeking answers to the pressing environmental questions of the day will not find them in the writings of this author of the images in this book, but it is possible that they will identify some useful questions."