Andreas Gursky’s work is about people and space. Although real-world subjects serve as starting points for his photographs, he subsequently manipulates his images in ways that cannot always be determined. Cold and impersonal spaces such as this hotel in Atlanta can be seen as a reflection of the anonymous, slick, and fast-paced contemporary world. There is no diversity in this type of interior—railings, doors, concrete planters, benches, and carpeted hallways are repeated, seemingly endlessly. Housekeeping carts appear, but they are so small in the vastness of the setting that they cannot add any real human presence. Although we understand what this type of photograph implies about our society, Gursky’s images are nonetheless often enticing, and even beautiful.

Label from Looking Out and Looking In: A Selection of Contemporary Photography, January 19–June 9, 2013