Markus Tuormaa: Kivihiilitie

Coal road
2012–2014, video, 25 min

Industrial modes of transport have impacted the way we see the landscape. The railway line was the first industrial mode of transport. The railway line and other industrialization arose from the energy contained in coal.
The landscape is only experienced through visual perception when looking out a train window and it is seen without the foreground. The person does not form a physical bond to the shapes of the terrain. The train flashes along a straight line through the landscape. As the mode of transport is not affected by the hills and valleys, the passenger's eyes see the landscape as a visual dance, a play in the window. This dance can be enchanting. The straight line of the tracks turns the landscape into a picture, just like a painter.
I had a strong landscape experience when I was cycling along the side of an old track. I could sense the smells, the heat of the sun and the evening dew. My body could feel the exhaustion caused by the trip, but at the same time my landscape experience was similar to that experienced through a train window. It was difficult to find a place for the tent because while cycling on the high bank along the track, the foreground of the landscape disappeared, just like it does for a train passenger. I felt the gravel and sand under my tires, but not the bottom layer of the forest where I could lie down.

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