Per Bak Jensen’s photographs exude a magnificent silence and, at first glance, appear to be entirely devoid of people. Upon closer inspection, however, they reveal traces of people and human presence. This work features a completely empty rodeo ranch in Utah, which, as the sign in the foreground reveals, is closed for the season. It comes across like an empty film set. In enigmatic motifs such as this, Per Bak Jensen’s photos objectively record and explore often-overlooked places, where humankind, culture and nature collide. The photograph was taken on a trip around the United States in 2000, when the artist photographed the country’s landscape, cities and highways. Per Bak Jensen never manipulates his photos. They are always direct reflections of the spirit of a certain place and often of the traces and imprints humans have left on the world. Nonetheless, the motifs take on further meaning and a special mystery, when as viewers we attempt to decode the places he chose and the symbols that naturally occur in the photos. In photos like this one, which regardless of the subject, exude a great deal of beauty, Per Bak Jensen simply compels us to see, and intensifies our vision.