Lenscratch- Road Trip Exhibition 

 

Thanks to Shawn Bush for selecting my image in the current Road Trip exhibition on Lenscratch.com, and thanks to Aline Smithson for providing a virtual realm for photographers like myself to have an outlet for sharing work that does not involve the accumulation of physical materials such as prints and frames.

Just two days ago, after countless hours, I finally cleared my Ohio storage unit of absolutely everything. Now all of my possessions fit into my car or are sprinkled around the country with a few friends filling in as foster parents until the day I may settle down here once again. That feeling comes with a mix of elation and terror. It’s an exchange of solidity for fluidity.

The image above was photographed during a cross-country road trip last fall. I stayed with friends, slept in my car, camped from a tent, and, on two or three days, treated myself to a cheap motel, including the one you see here. Part of my inspiration for this trip stemmed from the dominating male gaze of the road as a subject. It reminded me of my aching to explore the winding country roads near my childhood home in rural Appalachia. My brothers could do so, but the world around me insisted that venturing out alone was dangerous (for a girl) and it took persistence before I was allowed to bike the road alone.

When the wind kissed my face while coasting down those Appalachian hillsides, with nothing but field and forest by my side, chased by the calls of late-summer cicadas, I knew everything was going to be okay. I recreated the same sensation, time and time again, traveling on the road, windows rolled down, radio turned off. At times those worries of the world whispered in my ear, but just as before, everything turned out just fine.