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InspirationPhotography

Luca Arena finds beauty in the deserted landscapes and uniform architecture of Tenerife

In his series Impersonalism, Italian photographer Luca Arena captures Tenerife's so-called "uniform" style of architecture, picking out the same shapes and colours against a backdrop of the natural landscape.

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All images courtesy of Luca Arena. Via Creative Boom submission.

All images courtesy of Luca Arena. Via Creative Boom submission.

Although Luca hopes to highlight the effects of urban sprawl, his images reveal a certain beauty to the similar buildings. And as there are no people in his photographs, as though the island is completely deserted, it only adds to the intrigue.

Speaking of the local buildings, he said: "Here, typically Spanish living styles, with flat-roofed houses white or brightly coloured, blend with the need to want to represent, at least hypothetically, the urban sprawl of the great European capital, with modern tourist residences, impersonal and very similar to each other built in the middle of unspoiled places or at the very tourist beach resorts.

"The passing travellers were oblivious to the fact that the buildings are all the same, being able to enjoy the security in having found that provision of sufficient space to them. Although limited, this phenomenon tends to occur especially in suburban areas, and between the main effects, it's impossible not to detect a high consumption of the soil and, consequently, a reduction of green spaces. Due to the relentless and accelerating pace of expansion of cities and the demand for new buildings, the buildings tend to be similar to each other, characterised by the extreme homogeneity and by a predominantly uniform design environment built."

Clusters of blue and white hydrangea flowers in full bloom against a bright blue wall
Colourful residential buildings line a quiet suburban street in Tenerife, with parked cars and a painted roundel on the asphalt road
Brightly coloured uniform apartment buildings in shades of yellow, orange and red rise above a cornfield under a pale sky, with utility poles visible behind them
Dried maize crop against a split background of burnt orange and deep red walls, illustrating urban development encroaching on natural landscape
Tan and rust-coloured apartment building with uniform balconies behind a concrete barrier, set against a barren landscape and blue sky in Tenerife
Stepped concrete residential building with bright yellow doors and windows, surrounded by dark red shrubs with the sea visible in the background
Cream and red Volkswagen van parked on a beach with artificial grass and dried palm tree in background under grey sky
Brightly coloured residential buildings in green, red and yellow with small square windows stand against a barren landscape under a partly cloudy sky in Tenerife
A winding asphalt road curves through arid, scrubby terrain dotted with volcanic rock towards a large conical volcano under clear blue sky
Brown and white dog standing on sandy ground beside a large pile of dark volcanic rocks on Tenerife
Arid desert landscape with sparse vegetation and rocky mountains under clear blue sky in Tenerife
Arid desert landscape with sparse vegetation and rocky mountains under clear blue sky, showing lava rock formations in the distance
Minimalist white building facade with five teal-framed windows of varying sizes and a dark paved strip below, exemplifying uniform architecture in Tenerife
Bright blue sports court with white markings and a red-and-white goal sits empty beneath grey skies, with a dark rocky island and sparse buildings visible in the distance
White building with blue shutters and chimney above a dark stone wall, with yellow road markings on the tarmac below
Empty swimming pool with metal ladder and coloured lane dividers reflected in still blue water
White building with red, blue and orange corrugated metal garage doors and a yellow door, exemplifying Tenerife's uniform residential architecture
Green Sprite promotional crate with white vertical stripes against a weathered concrete wall and paved ground in Tenerife
Illuminated Repsol petrol station with domed structures and tall poles against a twilight sky in Tenerife
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