What characteristics define a contemporary American? Amid an increasingly polarized political and cultural landscape, photographer Richard Sharum traveled through the backbone of America to explore the common threads and seemingly insurmountable differences of a fractured nation.
For three years, Sharum traversed a long stretch between the Canadian and Mexican borders. From North Dakota to Kansas and Texas, he documented the lives of more than 4,000 people in more than 14,000 images, creating a snapshot of a historically overlooked region. “I knew that to find out what America is, I had to travel through the Central Corridor and see it for myself,” he said.
In his new book Spina Americanaa portrait of a nation appears in powerful black and white. On frozen water in Hemand, North Dakota, a fisherman shows off his recently pierced Northern Pike. In O’Neill, Nebraska, an elderly woman cradles a bowling ball in front of wood paneling, and two teenagers run from baseball practice in Tolar, Texas, to pose for Sharum.
The photographs are demarcated by location and an area often described as ‘flyover country’ and focus largely on the working class. Manual labor features prominently in the series, which features migrant workers picking oregano, a firefighter and a cotton candy seller. While the working class in this region is often left out or patronized in pop culture and political conversations, Sharum portrays each person with reverence and a desire to emphasize a shared humanity. The lack of color similarly draws attention to the material conditions and expressions of the subjects. He adds:
This term, flyover country, was one I had heard all my life, but never really thought about in terms of the condescension it implied. I felt that this part of our country had been ignored politically, socially, and culturally for decades, its obscurity creating a subtle but consistent vacuum that had implicitly added fuel to our national divisions.
Sharum grew up in Corpus Christi and is now based in Corning, New York. Spina Americana is published by GOST Books and available at Bookstore. Find more of his work at his website. (via PetaPixel)
