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 Ghetto school in East St. Louis © Jacob Holdt Yesterday was brutal. We drove from St Louis to Chicago (298 miles) and found only one situation to shoot. Definitely not the best way to end a 1,500 mile search for stranded motorists. Normally I would be completely frustrated, but this project is all about the collapse of certainty in America during the second term of the Bush administration, so coming up short seems symbolically appropriate. When I do these trips I often speed from city to city, rarely stopping to visit the bounty of attractions America has to offer. For the final leg of this trip we slowed it down a bit and took in some of the sights. First stop was a pilgrimage to Miles Davis' boyhood home in East St Louis. East St Louis looks exactly like New Orleans did after Katrina, only the devastation in this city was caused by the gradual decay of America's industrial economy. More than ninety percent of downtown East St Louis appears to be boarded up or falling down and there didn't appear to be but a few liquor stores providing the basics for people. No place to buy milk or gas or diapers or work. It's really tragic that the richest country in the world allows this kind of poverty smack dab in its heart.  Cahokia Mounds A short ride from East St. Louis we stopped to see the Cahokia Mounds. Cahokia is the ruins of a massive ancient city inhabited by Native Americans between 650-1400 CE. There are over a hundred mounds that still remain on the site including Monk's Mound, the largest man-made earthen mound in North America.  Mathew Brady Much further down the road in Springfield, IL we visited the tomb of Abraham Lincoln. The tomb was closed, but we had a good time watching as an endless parade of minivans pulled up and unloaded pods of dirty faced sausage children to pay their respects to the Great Emancipator. When we got to Chicago we realized too late the city was running the marathon and hosting an outdoor country music festival on the same day. Several tense hours in traffic later we made it the Gitelson's for a delicious dinner and proper introductions to the new Git on the block, Archie. After dinner we drove to Milwaukee (92 miles) and caught a few hours of sleep before our early morning flight back to New York.
 208 High Street, Boonville, Missouri, 2007 © Timothy Briner We started the day in Kansas City and after a brief encounter with a weirdo at a Radio Shack in Kansas we hit up Brian Ulrich's show at the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art in Overland Park, Kansas. What an impressive space and what an impressive showing for Brian. He had twenty-one beautifully massive prints covering several rooms of the museum. After the show we started out on the long journey east on I-70 towards St Louis. I-70 between Kansas City and St Louis (249 miles) is straight and long and has a billboard every ten feet. You can tell a lot about a state by reading all the signs that line the highway. It would seem the good people of Missouri love John McCain, hate baby-killers, and have a voracious appetite for porn. There were more adult superstores than there were Dairy Queens. Along the way we stopped in Boonville, MO for lunch (hello, Tim!). Today was a great day for stranded motorists. I shot five encounters which definitely made up for the first two days. Just outside of St Louis I was lucky to photograph Orlando who was broken down on the west bound shoulder of I-70. Orlando had the most impressive gold grill I've ever seen and was a real sweetheart. Once the sun started to set we headed over to the Arch. I have been to St Louis before but never really paid attention the city's most famous landmark. It really is a beautiful piece of art. When we were in Minneapolis we saw the Eero Saarinen exhibit as the Walker Arts Center and seeing the Saarinen-designed arch in person was the perfect compliment to our journey. Tomorrow we are off to Chicago (298 miles) where we are hoping to see the Gitelson clan...
 B.B.'s Lawnside BBQ, Kansas City, MO We've spent the past three days on the road working on my Stranded project. On Wednesday we flew into Milwaukee, rented a car, and where off on big loop of the Midwest. From Milwaukee we drove straight to Minneapolis then to Des Moines and then to Kansas City. Up until today the trip has been a bit of stranded motorist bust. From Milwaukee to Minneapolis (336 miles) we only encountered a single situation to shoot, but as I approached the car I realized the couple were smoking a joint and were not too interested in having their picture taken. From Minneapolis to Des Moines (244 miles) we found one stranded motorist on I-35 just outside of Dow, Iowa. Her name was Milta and she was a Christian missionary on her way to visit her daughter in Des Moines when her car broke down. Des Moines to Kansas City (194 miles) proved fruitless. We saw a number of people broken down in the opposite direction, but by the time we found an offramp and raced back, they were long gone. I've never traveled this far and found so few motorists to shoot. Luckily, when we got to Kansas City I hit the jackpot and shot four situations today. Kansas City is a pretty happening town. We visited the American Jazz Museum and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in the 18th and Vine historic district and then we took in the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. The Nelson-Atkins has an impressive permanent collection with a great selection of photography. Definitely a must see if you are ever in Kansas City. We couldn't come to Kansas City without eating some barbeque. So, after the museum we headed to a B.B.'s Lawnside BBQ for a rib dinner and live blues. The ribs were the best I've ever tasted and the band, Trampled Under Foot, was h-o-t. This place felt like the real deal. Tomorrow we are off to St Louis (249 miles)...
 Peri, Route 80, Kentucky 2006 © Amy Stein
Amani Olu just let me know that one of my prints is up for sale on eBay. This is the first time my work has hit the secondary market and while it's only eBay, it's still a minor landmark in my career. The print, Peri, Route 64, Kentucky from my Stranded series, was originally available for sale as part of Humble Arts Foundation's Limited Edition Print sale. The original price of the print was $375 and the eBay price is, well, look for yourself. Also notice the seller says Peri has never been "framed or displayed" which basically means the person never enjoyed it. Too funny. I don't see this as an endorsement of my work so much as a strong endorsement of the quality of work and the amazing deals available through Humble's Limited Edition program. Unless you like living with regret you should head over to the Humble site now and pick up a print or three.
 Anna and Lily, Route 17, NY 2008 © Amy Stein MarkingRoom is an online magazine that looks at the process of making images. The magazine is run by the wonderful Davin Risk who also writes the MakingRoom blog. Davin just posted an interview with me about my ongoing Stranded series.
Finally some installation shots from my shows currently up at Paul Kopeikin Gallery and SMoCA. Domesticated at Paul Kopeikin   Stranded at SMoCA    (If you could turn around you would see a wall of Robert Franks.) Chorizo Pig!  I spotted Chorizo Pig in a supermarket in Phoenix. I had a wonderful time in Arizona. Big thanks to Claire Carter, Michael Lundgren, Pat Evans and all the folks at SMoCA.
 Susie, Andrew and Pam, Route 17, New York © Amy Stein I just added some new Domesticated and Stranded images to my Web site. Take a look and let me know what you think. If you are in SoCal and want to see the Domesticated images in person, please come to my big solo show opening this Saturday at Paul Kopeikin Gallery.
 Fat Car, 2000 © Erwin Wurm Work from my Stranded series is currently featured in the exhibit Car Culture at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art. The big opening for the show is this Friday from 6 - 8 PM. If you are in Scottsdale or the greater Phoenix area, try to stop by and check out the exhibition. Also, the folks at SMoCA have put together a snazzy site to compliment the show. It's the next best thing to being there.
 Unitled (Tree Mural) 2004 © Nathan Lyons I have been working long hours of late putting the finishing touches on my Domesticated book. Lots of last minute tweaks and edits, minor revisions and tons of back and forth with the designer. It's pretty stressful stuff, but I am feeling really good about the final product and the extra time I spent sweating the details. Naturally, after you finish with one laborious and mentally taxing process you immediately begin to think of doing it again, right? Maybe I'm just a masochist, but I can't wait to start on a book for my Stranded series. Fortunately for me I will have a great opportunity to do just that once Summer finally shines it's way on to the scene. A couple of months ago I received a letter of invitation from Light Work to be their Artist-in-Residence for June. If you are not familiar with the program you should get acquainted and apply because it is the probably the best artist-in-residency photography program in the US. Past Artists-in-Residence have included Joel Sternfeld, Cindy Sherman, Andrea Modica, Nathan Lyons, Carrie Mae Weems, Angelika Rinnhofer, Alessandra Sanguinetti and Hank Willis Thomas, so you know this is a top notch affair. It's a wonderful honor and I'm very grateful to the generous Doug Dubois for pushing me to apply. The month-long Light Work residency includes a $4,000 stipend, an apartment to stay in, a private darkroom, an assistant and 24-hour access to their world class facilities at the Robert B. Menschel Media Center at Syracuse University. For a full month you have the luxury of time and access to completely focus on your work. I can't wait to get up there and start making a ton of new prints.
Perry, Route 80, Kentucky 2005 © Amy Stein Humble Arts Foundation is currently offering 20% off the price of their limited edition print selection. That means you can now get an even better deal on already ridiculously low priced prints by some great photographers. And, you will be supporting the fabulous work of the Humble Arts Foundation in the process. If you've always wanted to buy one of my photographs, now all you have to do is pony-up $300 for Perry, Route 80, Kentucky from my Stranded series. You better hurry and buy now, there are only three left! UPDATE: Perry is now sold out, but photos by great photographers like Rachael Dunville, Dina Kantor, Corey Arnold, and Sarah Sudhoff are still available.
 © Robert Bechtle Six of my Stranded photos are going to be hanging in a museum show next to works by Robert Frank and Robert Bechtle. Holy crap! Seriously, one of these things is not like the others. I will post more about this show later.
 Lori and Ron, Interstate 5, Oregon © Amy Stein I've added some new photographs to my Stranded Google map from my most recent road trip through northern California and Nevada, southern Idaho, and Oregon. I really believe there are some winners here. I am thinking about making another Stranded trip in the next couple of weeks. This time we may be hitting the highways of the Midwest looking for broken down motorists. I will keep you posted.
 Watering Hole © Amy Stein If you are in London this weekend be sure to make it over to the Bridge Art Fair. Randall Scott Gallery will be exhibiting work from my Domesticated, Stranded, and Halloween in Harlem series in addition to works by Julia Fullerton-Batten, Cara Ober, Nick Walker, Etsuko Ichikawa, Ryoko Suzuki, Sarah Wilmer, Alejandra Laviada. Here are the details:Bridge Art Fair
October 11 - October 14th
The Trafalgar Hotel
2 Spring Gardens, Trafalgar Square
Randal Scott Gallery, Room 718
 © Amy Stein The October issue of Money Magazine features a story by the fabulous Lisa Hunter about using the Internets to buy art. The story, The Art of the Internet, is a great survey of art online for the beginning collector. Money ran one of my Stranded photos with the article along with pricing info for the series and a shout out to my Los Angeles rep, Paul Kopeikin Galley. In other glossy news, Dina Kantor has been named to Heeb Magazines' Heeb 100 list. The Heeb 100 is the magazine's annual roundup of the one hundred young cultural tastemakers you need to know...who also happen to be Jewish. Other chosen people chosen for the list include comedian Judah Friedlander and porn star Michael Lucas. Dina was recognized for her amazing Finnish & Jewish series.
 © Younga Park Jen Bekman has finally launched her new online venture, 20x200, and I quickly scooped up a $20 print by Amy Ross. It will be interesting to see how hungry the masses are for art in large editions at low prices, but I know I will keep coming back for more. These days the Internet is chock full of opportunities to purchase photography by big names at well below market prices. Aperture and Blind Spot are the big names in cheap(ish) prints, but you should also check out the inventory at SF Camerawork, the Museum of Contemporary Photography, and The Photographers' Gallery. Also, I would not be doing my duty as a working photographer and fan of Humble Arts Foundation if I didn't mention their limited edition prints collection, again. You can pick up a small-editioned print from my Stranded series for the ridiculously low price of $375. The print, Peri Route 80 Kentucky, was one of five photos from the Stranded series recently purchased by the West Collection, so what are you waiting for? The big Wall Street collectors may be hurting these days, but that shouldn't stop us hoi polloi from getting into the game and start building our own collections.
 Another long day of traveling through beautiful country. We only ran into one stranded motorist, but I think the photos will be great. Possibly a triptych. Normally I would be disappointed after driving for an entire day and only shooting one situation, but this trip was just too amazing to complain. We started in Eureka down Highway 101 toward the Avenue of the Giants. Standing in the coastal redwoods of Humboldt County is a religious experience. They are like a cathedral. You just exist in their presence empty of words and in total awe at the power of these trees. After the 31 mile trek through the redwoods we picked up Pacific Coast Highway and drove down the Mendocino coast. This is where we found our stranded couple whose car had broken down next to a stretch of beach. They set up some tents and were camping for a couple of days while they tried to figure out next steps. The Mendocino Coast is just amazing. Every turn reveals something more breathtaking. When you are in this area of the country you understand not to try capture it with pictures. You just look. You try not to talk about the beauty because words will fail. You just listen. This type of natural beauty politely demands you to just absorb it in the moment and promise to come back. Tomorrow is the last day of our trip. The plan is to head inland slightly and start hitting up the wineries of the Anderson Valley and the Russian River Valley and then stay the night in San Francisco. We fly out of SFO early Sunday morning and head back to the grime and grit of New York City.
 5th Street and Broadway, Eureka, CA © Stephen Shore
What a haul. Today we traveled the length of Oregon on Interstate 5, across to Crescent City on Highway 199, and down the Redwood Highway to Eureka. Along the way we photographed five stranded motorists including a one-legged hippie named Josh in Humboldt County. All day long the light was perfect and each situation proved better than the next. Tomorrow we are going to tour Avenue of the Giants and then head to Mendocino County for a final luxurious evening before leaving the west and heading back to New York.
 We rolled into the Rose City yesterday after a hike through Oneonta Gorge and a stop at the Edgefield for a couple of beers. We found a couple of stranded motorist, but the next couple of days are all about exploring Portland and taking a rest from photography. Last night we hung out in the Hawthorne neighborhood with the fabulously talented Corey Arnold and crashed at his home for the night. It's always a unique privilege to talk shop and careers with someone whose work you really respect and who's in a similar place trying to figure out this whole fine art photography thing. It's even better when he is a cool cat and very nice guy.
 Another long drive today, but the stranded business was good. We left Boise and found a couple stuck under an overpass not ten minutes later. The photos from this shoot should be a little different and I am excited to print them. A short while later we saw a woman and her children stuck in the east bound lane of I-84. We were heading west bound. As is often the case with my Stranded trips I have to search for the next exit and travel in the opposite direction to get the picture. Two steps forward and three steps back. This time the turnaround was worth it. There should be some amazing pictures from this stop. The lady kept jumping a barbed wire fence to fill up a water bottle in an farm aqueduct so she could stop her car from overheating. It was quite the scene. Several hundred miles later in Oregon we found a guy off the highway in a narrow pass in Lime, Oregon. The scenery was striking and it should be another strong image. Finally, we hit the Columbia River Gorge and found our final stranded motorist in Rufus, Oregon. He was a long haul trucker trying to deliver his load on time, but hopelessly stuck as his rig was pouring out black smoke. After two states and close to 400 miles of road in a single day we finally decided to have a nice dinner in lovely Hood River, Oregon. It was good to be a little civilized after three straight days of snacks, road side food, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Tomorrow we are going to tool around the Columbia River Gorge and then make our way to Portland for a couple days of Rose City excitement. Until tomorrow...
 Long day yesterday. We drove from Winnemucca, Nevada, to Wells, Nevada, and then up Twin Falls, Idaho, and west to Boise. Many miles and only three stranded motorists. We did stop at the Snake River Canyon in Twin Falls and saw the site of Evil Knievel's 1974 jump attempt. There is a lot of beautiful open land out here, but not many stranded motorists. Today we are going to poke around Boise and then head to Portland.
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