Tom Sandberg

Tom Sandberg, Untitled, date unknown

I came across Tom Sandberg's pictures in Aperture the other day and really liked them. Sandberg, a Norwegian, had his first New York show at P.S.1 a few months ago. I was sorry I missed it.


Tom Sandberg, Untitled, date unknown

Then, on Google, I came across a link to an earlier post about Sandberg by Alec Soth, some comments to which raised questions about this picture:


Tom Sandberg, Untitled, date unknown

Specifically, a reader objected that planes don't fly that close to the ground unless their landing gear is down. Good point. And, as it turns out, absolutely right. Sandberg digitally removed the plane's wheels.

Why? Who knows. Does it matter? I think maybe it does. The photograph is degraded by it. (Imagine the airplane with its wheels intact.) Worse, the manipulation opens a gap between the apparent naturalism of Sandberg's work and what the viewer now knows about it.

All in all, a strange choice. I wonder what he was thinking.