Your work confronts neglected structures in rural areas as representations of the Rust Belt ’ s deindustrialization and economic decline . How would you say your work responds to the American Dream ?
I believe that the memories and spirits of the American Dream linger in these places long after the physical bodies leave . Inanimate objects contain and exude a presence as well . I present a forgotten past that illustrates the hopes , passions , successes and failures of that dream .
My images give the viewer a chance to feel the pain , shame and suffering of a 1937 pickup freezing for another winter in a frozen field ; the empty silence of a prairie grain elevator waiting in vain for a harvest that will never come .
My visual voice has a story to tell : It ’ s a story of a country that was made great by resourcefulness and ingenuity — a country that became a victim of its own success , and in its short-sightedness , cast aside the processes and with it , the people .