Pumping is a series of photos, an art installation, and a movie by Joel Tauber that imagines a future when water is scarce and oil no longer exists; while it also looks back at the forces that built the sprawling city of Los Angeles.

1873
Los Angeles
6,000 people living in a semi-desert
Dreams of trains
Rumbling through the landscape
Ushering in “Civilization”,
Christianity, and Economic Progress

A massive government handout
The Southern Pacific Railroad seizes it
And commandeers the City
Bribes
Propaganda
Squashing of rivals
Escalation of freight prices
Pullman Strike
Army quells strike

Trains
Tracks
Infrastructure
Proclamations of paradise
Migration
Rapid growth
Sprawl
An exciting city emerges
A powerful railroad facilitates and shapes its growth
