I had an opportunity to attend the opening ceremony of Extraction / Abstraction, a major photography exhibition by renowned Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky, held at the Seoul Museum of History on Dec. 12. Organized to commemorate the Korea-Canada Year of Cultural Exchange, the exhibition was supported by the Embassy of Canada in Korea and the Seoul Museum of History. This large-scale retrospective brings together more than four decades of Burtynsky’s work, offering a powerful visual record of how human activity — driven by industrialization and economic ambition — has transformed the natural environment. Known internationally for his large-format images of human-altered landscapes, Burtynsky works across both traditional film and advanced digital techniques. His photographs confront an uncomfortable paradox: The marks of industry can appear visually beautiful, even sublime, while simultaneously revealing profound environmental damage. Viewers are drawn in by aesthetic appeal, only to be left questioning the true cost of progress. The exhibition title, Extraction / Abstracti