Travels

Avedon shooting for In the American West

Out of all the texts we have studied, the one that I found most impactful was Travels With Charley by John Steinbeck. The aspect that I liked most about this work was the fact that he was not only seeking time alone to learn more about himself, but also his primary goal was to meet other people and learn more about their lives. The whole idea of taking a trailer across the country simply to experience it, without many other goals than that in mind is very appealing to me because there aren't a lot of plans in mind, just one general goal. Steinbeck felt he could not write about society if he did not truly know it, and I like this idea of having an obligation to get to know the world around you.

I would recreate this by doing this same thing nearly, only I would include someone to come along for the ride. I am a photographer, so taking a cross-country roadtrip in a car taking portraits of those I meet along the way would be ideal to me. Richard Avedon did this in a way, and many people found these portraits to be most impactful because they were real people and real faces of America.