John Pfahl was a pioneer in the transformation of American landscape photography in the 1970s, and his body of work has since influenced generations who shoot the land.

Through his career, Pfahl’s approach has encouraged artists and viewers alike to contemplate the image both conceptually and visually and to consider questions about the way humans interact with the land, both socially and photographically. Over the last half-century, Pfahl’s work has keenly reflected these perceptual and societal changes through numerous series dealing with the environment, constructed, natural and, in many cases, both.

Pfahl died of the novel coronavirus on April 15, 2020, in Buffalo, New York. An obituary for Pfahl is part of a series in the New York Times about people who have died in the coronavirus pandemic.