American Geography City Life

American Geography City LifeWhen Matt Black began exploring his home in Californias rural Central Valley known as the other California, where one third of the population lives in poverty he knew what his next project had to be. Black was inspired to create a vivid portrait of an unknown America, to photograph some of the poorest communities across the US. Traveling across 46 states and Puerto Rico, Black visited designated poverty areas, places with a poverty rate above 20

visual saturation and rigor allows us to grasp the complexity of his subject

From the start

and the cold lure me in

Black in White America

that they alone know the implications of their situation

Known for his use of garish colours and esoteric composition

His clarity of voice has drawn many comparisons to literature

and I photographed everything from the sweeping of the red carpet to her press secretary’s checking off her itinerary

It is the second poorest and most violent state in the country

drawing on photographs that are now recognized as some of the most important visual records of British life made during this period

far-flung corners

that same year