A 21st century perspective of the past
ABOUT OUR PROJECT
We’re Jess and Elena and we’re two students at Washington and Lee University and we love photography (we’re obsessed actually). This project started with Robert Frank’s The Americans. After discovering his project, we fell in love.
So we decided to hit the road! We wanted to see what became of the places that Frank saw nearly 70 years ago. Starting in our home state of Pennsylvania, we hop on Frank’s route in New York City. We pulled all the locations of his photos from his book and from the National Gallery of Art’s map of the route. From there, we loop up and across New York state and begin the trek across the country. The hope is to complete the circle and come home by the end of July.
Frank was a Swiss photographer shooting America in the 1950s exposing the America that can only be seen through the eyes of an immigrant. His project revealed America at its core: from Hollywood and New York City, to the open highways of Nebraska and New Mexico, to finally zig-zagging through the South from Texas to Georgia.
Throughout this month, we hope to witness the essence of the country during a time of turmoil; from the political unrest of the past several years to the beginnings of recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope to see just a sliver of what he saw, and use his route to make our own way through the country.
We’re super excited to be doing this project, so if you’re interested follow the blog and see where we go!
MEET JESS!
A rising Junior at Washington and Lee University
Hi!! I’m from a small town in Pennsylvania called Bloomsburg (the only town in Pennsylvania!!). I’m a rising junior at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia and am double majoring in studio art and journalism and studying Arabic. Outside of classwork I am a residential advisor in Graham-Lees (a first-year dorm) and am the First-year Experience Coordinator. I also write for and in the fall will be one of the News editors for the Ring-tum Phi newspaper here at W&L, I will be work-studying with Kevin Remington, the University Photographer, and I play the tuba! When I’m not busy with that, I love to read and watch Marvel movies (Iron Man 3 or bust)! Other than Robert Frank, I’m really inspired by Pop artists, like Roy Lichtenstein (Drowning Girl is my favorite piece of art of all time) and musicians like David Bowie and Led Zeppelin. I’m most excited to do my first independent photography project and get to travel the country with one of my closest friends!
MEET ELENA!
A rising sophomore at Washington and Lee University
Hi Howdy Hey!
I am a rising sophomore at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia and will be double majoring in Journalism and History with a Studio Art minor! I am currently living in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania. Outside of class (and partially in), I play the flute and the piccolo in the University Wind Ensemble, am a photographer for the Ring-tum Phi, and a member of QLA, the Pan-Asian Association for Cultural Exchange (PAACE), as well as being an International Student Orientation leader!! Next year, I will be the social media chair for the Band and the Orchestra, the QLA gala chair, an event planner for PAACE, and will be doing a work study with the University Photographer (Kevin Remington!). I love to travel and spend time with friends (perfect union for this trip) and adore music of almost every genre; I have lived abroad just shy of half my life, and am excited to travel westwards in the United States for really the first time ever! Artists that inspire me are the iconic Keith Haring and Vincent Van Gogh (basic but fight me), as well as Claude Monet and all of his dotty paintings, and newly, Thomas Cole and his breathtaking landscapes. I’m so excited to be working with Jess on this project and am thrilled by the opportunity to do this together with her :)
