This wide-angle photograph, taken on a grassy, southern Alberta plain under a bright, partly overcast sky, shows a single pumpjack at work—its form framed neatly between one upright power pole and parallel electrical wires cutting across the upper third of the image. The pole stands centered and rigid in the foreground; the pumpjack, off to the left, is somewhat distant and aloof yet active.
If Wired with Oil explores energy systems layered atop one another, Lines of Tension presents a more competitive stance. Here, the pumpjack feels constrained by an established framework of electric infrastructure—a solitary but persistent presence in a society wanting to lean into more electrons than hydrocarbons. The juxtaposition doesn’t suggest harmony, but rivalry: two systems sharing competitive space in the business of energy. The image captures a moment of overlap, where systems compete side by side, each delivering energy in its own way.