Sand, stone, and earth are among the most extracted materials on the planet—yet their removal is rarely pictured, let alone understood as foundational to the built environment. In the exhibition DOMINIO: An Unfinished Visual Archive of Architectural Extractivism, on view in the Newmark Gallery at Art Omi from March 21–May 31, 2026, architectural photographer Onnis Luque traces these often-invisible origins of construction back to the raw landscapes from which they are born.
What began in 2014 as a roadside encounter with a sand mine evolved into a years-long investigation of Mexico's extractive geographies—from the Mezquital Valley to the Highlands of Chiapas, the Sierra de las Mitras to the Yucatán Peninsula. Through his lens, Luque captures the aftermath of relentless extraction: fractured hillsides, gaping quarries, and industrial scars etched into the land.
