Photography Exhibit, Pt.1

One of the few things I find myself thinking about often is that I'm not taking enough pictures. I've taken a fair number in my time and reviewing them is one of those self-made luxuries. Digital photography is pretty versatile. I am no connoisseur of digital photography or even of photography in general, but some of the images I have taken with a relatively old and unimpressive camera are excellent. To me at least, the best of them are small works of art that encapsulate something of their moment; the worst are lessons that I know can be understood and mastered.

My American Midwest series is probably some of the finest (I'm tempted to type 'phinest' but that reads wrongly) photography I've ever gotten up to. At one point, however, I went insane and scored artistic merit points only on the number of flags per picture. This led to a period of artistic distraction that almost destroyed me. More on that later. My focus was the American highway:

Oh the thing was very worthwhile in the end, but I doubted myself for many years. There are pictures I'm not brave enough to take. For instance the pure and haunting recollection of a motorcycle roaring across a rural intersection with an extra large flag. I was too slow to catch it and there is no way I can express that sort of thing in words, because I've seen it, goddamnit! Words will never do it justice. On the other hand, there was interstate commentary to be made:

The best I could try for was a photographic syllogism, but I think it only really resolved itself in a half-assed Velvet Underground homage. It is also vaguely an allusion to certain stereotypically midwest politics, I guess, but you'd need to read the image critically for that. Something about that midwest sky is different than what I'm used to, and I know expansive skies.

Then again it is pretty ubiquitous, and the above picture isn't really an homage to anything in particular. That sky is pretty typical dusk fare. Some of that is pretty nice, though. It's reassuring, even, in a weird sort of way - as if the crane is waving goodnight. Yeesh. I need a break from this business. Stay tuned for Part 2, which may feature several iconic images of the legendary American Flag in Real America.