Alex Davies
Culture

If you want to check out artist Tim Simmons’ nature photos, avoid museums and art galleries. The work is on display, but not where you would expect: the photos can be found in giant form on billboards in Los Angeles and Philadelphia. Called the “Urban Land Project,” the unique exhibit seeks to make passersby reflect on their surroundings.

The Urban Land Project also features Simmons’ photographs in smaller murals on building walls around the two cities. The beauty of the wild clashes with the decrepit surroundings of the photos. Simmons writes:
This project is meant to stimulate awareness. These images against these backdrops accentuate the tensions between the human and natural worlds.

Unlike much urban art, the goal of the Urban Land Project seems less to humanize the cityscape than to make city dwellers yearn for nature.
The two billboards in LA are on North Cahuenga Boulevard, near Sunset Bvd. The three in Philadelphia are on I-95. They and the murals will be on display through October.

(Source: www.treehugger.com )