Odyssey

Journey of a Fugitive

Many photographers are drawn to the open road, a road trip. Rather than working on a specific project, it is one of infinite discovery, a journey for inspiration. I was drawn to the road with the lofty goal of telling the story of America. I wanted to hear its people’s stories, dreams, challenges, loves, and disappointments, and to make their portraits—a portrait of America, of Americans and the landscapes they lived in. I searched for a singular road that traversed the country coast to coast and found US Highway 20, Boston to Newport, Oregon, 3,365 miles It threads coast to coast cutting through bands of mountains, deserts, high and low plains, prairies and farmlands, bisected by the Mississippi River. One could wander all over America in search of her people, her landscapes, her soul. Staying on Highway 20 would be the only discipline I would exercise to find her.

My travel would be in a small, self-contained RV, never leaving the road. I found that the road warrior’s journey is a two-way highway, driving toward what lies over the horizon and away from things better left behind – a fugitive seeking solace.