Winter 2022 - 1.1 Litte Boxes/Cajas Pequeñas

With over a billion square feet of warehouses and highways bustling with trucks, 1 in 6 jobs are related to the Logisitcs industry in San Bernardino.*  The expansion we have seen since the pandemic has grown exponentially and residents feel this impact every day. A shift in the history of photography, the 1975 exhibition New Topographics, signaled a radical departure from traditional depictions of landscapes. Pictures of sweeping vistas gave way to unromanticized views of stark industrial landscapes, suburban sprawl, and everyday scenes not usually given a second glance.* Now, more than 40 years later, these photographs explore the violent aftermath of industry; construction, congestion and unregulated growth which threatens the health of frontline communities living next door. 

For the first year of our publication, we have chosen to focus on land. Living in the Inland Empire, we have seen the landscape change. How do these changes shape the ways in which we produce, know and negotiate space?* In our upcoming issues, we will observe the environmental impact industry has had on our community and consider the notion of borders in all their forms—geographic, mental and philosophical. Each edition will feature an artist and supporting contributors in conversation addressing our theme. We look to the history of this land, the ancestral home of the Serrano people, for ways to honor it and preserve it.