American Geography by Matt Black
American Geography is the visual record of Magnum photographer Matt Black’s five-year, 100,000-mile road trip across 46 states of the United States, plus Puerto Rico. It examines the conditions of powerlessness, prejudice and pragmatism among America’s poor. The project originated in Matt Black’s exploration of his own home town in California’s rural Central Valley – a place that has been called ‘the other California’ – where one third of the population lives in poverty. Travelling out from that location in 2015, he went on to visit designated ‘poverty areas’ – places with poverty rates of above 20% as defined by the US census. He found that, rather than being anomalies, ‘poverty areas’ are never more than two-hour’s drive apart. They are woven throughout the fabric of the country, yet are cut off from the ‘land of opportunity’. Matt Black’s compelling black and white photographs, from which one can trace a line back to the FSA Photographers of the 1930s and 1940s such as Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange, are accompanied by his own travelogue – an eclectic combination of observations, overheard conversations in cafés and city buses, diner menus, bus timetables, historical facts and echoes from daily news reports – which enrich the vivid portrait of these ‘states of un-America.’ With 100 illustrations in colour
'[Black's] photographs are in stark black and white, and have an almost lino- or woodcut feel to themTheir strong graphic quality – the contrasts between black shadows and harsh sunlight – endow his images with a sharp edge supremely appropriate for his subject' - Morning Star
'The photographs confer a stoical dignity on these exiles from America’s glossy promise, and notes from Black’s journals reveal how compassionately he listened to their jaunty tales of woe' - Observer
'An eye-opener' - Black & White Photography
'An unflinching and challenging portrayal of its subject matter' - Digital Camera Magazine
'The photographs confer a stoical dignity on these exiles from America’s glossy promise, and notes from Black’s journals reveal how compassionately he listened to their jaunty tales of woe' - Observer
'An eye-opener' - Black & White Photography
'An unflinching and challenging portrayal of its subject matter' - Digital Camera Magazine
Matt Black is a member of Magnum Photos. He was named as TIME magazine’s Instagram Photographer of the year in 2014, and has over 230,000 Instagram followers. The awards and honours he has received include the W. Eugene Smith Award, and two Robert F. Kennedy Journalism awards.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780500545355 |
| ISBN 10 | 0500545359 |
| Title | American Geography |
| Author | Matt Black |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Thames & Hudson Ltd |
| Year published | 2021-09-30 |
| Number of pages | 168 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |