Salt Pans: Shocking aerial photos of India's barren salt-producing wastelands

Spread over nearly 2,000 square miles, the area is also known as 'Survey Number Zero' because no land survey has been conducted there since the end of the British rule in India in 1947. From his unique vantage point above this harsh place, Edward captured the shapes, patterns and colours of the land and the shallow artificial ponds from which salt has been harvested for centuries.

Now you can see these works in a new exhibition at the Howard Greenberg Gallery in New York until the end of 2016, along with the launch of a new book entitled Salt Pans, available via Steidl and featuring over 30 images from the series.

Edward, whose incisive work explores the dilemmas at the heart of our globalised world, is known for portraying the visible outcomes of humankind’s impact on the environment. He was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2006, and has received many other awards. He holds six honorary doctorate degrees, including two he received this spring. Born in Ontario in 1955, Edward now lives and works in Toronto. Discover more at www.edwardburtynsky.com.

Via Creative Boom submission | All images © Edward Burtynsky, courtesy Metivier Gallery, Toronto / Greenberg Gallery and Wolkowitz Gallery, New York