To East and West, to North and South: Regionalism and Mythology in Contemporary American Photography

美国艺术史和摄影史大部分集中在这个国家的周边大都市，包括纽约和洛杉矶，忽视了其他历史上确定的地区在美国文化想象形成中的影响。拟议的论文调查这些地区的文化和神话角色，包括中西部，太平洋西北部，阿巴拉契亚和西南部，确定每个作为一个重要的文化符号在摄影领域。当代美国的政治分歧导致了摄影项目的复兴，这些项目通过记录边缘化地区和社区来质疑美国的社会和文化观念。虽然从历史上看，区域主义一直被认为是一个政治右倾运动，执行保守的美国价值观（Nygard，2020），区域主义摄影在21世纪世纪批评国家和地区身份的形成，叙事的建设，以及社区和归属感的主题。因此，本研究解决了以下问题：当代摄影师如何部署，适当的，批评，或以其他方式与区域主义作为一种文化，批评和/或政治工具？这项研究是由大卫坎帕尼的概念，即“图片[美国]的行为是诊断，定义和自我主张的主要行为”（坎帕尼，2014）。许多关于美国摄影的学术研究忽略了地区性的特点，而倾向于将摄影简化为一个同质的全国性的类别（Sontag，1982;绿色，1984; Guimond，1991; Gidley，2011）。为了克服这些区域，文化和历史偏见，该项目采用了比较分析，以确定地方和区域身份的含义和表现如何从一个地区和社区到另一个地区和社区波动。案例研究包括但不限于卡尔·比格莫尔的《两个人之间》（2015年），这是一部剖析太平洋西北部源自流行文化的电影层面的系列;纳撒尼尔·格兰在《中西部感伤》（2018年）中对中西部地区“空虚常态”的调查;以及布莱恩·舒特马特对美国西部采矿社区的心理描绘，正如他的项目“格雷山发送”（2013）中所见。这项研究从两个方面打破了美国摄影史的传统经典：首先，它追踪和分析了被忽视的地区和社区所固有的意识形态和形象。其次，它扩展了经典，考虑这些概念是如何被土著和女性摄影师传达和挑战的，包括例如Megan G。金和斯泰西克拉尼茨，他们在阿巴拉契亚展示了贫穷和保守主义的视觉遗产。我的方法是交叉的，揭示了摄影师如何为当代非殖民化和代表政治问题做出贡献。2022-23年秋季-春季-分析英国的二手资料;广泛的研究培训和学术网络（米德兰艺术计划）。秋季-春季2023-24 -收集来自美国档案馆的主要材料，并采访摄影师和策展人（研究发展基金）;论文初稿完成。秋季-春季2024-25 -在当代艺术机构安置;与其他M4 C候选人合作的研讨会（队列发展基金）;论文第二稿完成。秋季2025 -论文定稿完成;考试。

Histories of American art and photography have for most part focused on the country's peripheral metropolises, including New York and Los Angeles, ignoring the influence of other historically defined regions in the formation of American cultural imaginary. The proposed thesis investigates the cultural and mythological roles of such regions, including the Midwest, the Pacific Northwest, the Appalachia, and the Southwest, identifying each as a significant cultural signifier in the realm of photography. The political divide in contemporary United States has led to a resurgence of photographic projects that interrogate the social and cultural notions of Americanness by documenting marginalized regions and communities. Whilst historically Regionalism has been considered as a politically right-leaning movement enforcing conservative American values (Nygard, 2020), Regionalist photography in the 21st century critiques the formation of national and regional identities, the construction of narratives, and themes of community and belonging. Thus, this research addresses the following question: how do contemporary photographers deploy, appropriate, critique, or otherwise engage with Regionalism as a cultural, critical,and/or political tool?The research is informed by David Campany's notion that "the act of picturing [America] is a primary act of diagnosis, definition and self-assertion" (Campany, 2014). Much of the scholarship on American photography ignores regional peculiarities in favour of framing photography reductively as a homogenous and nationwide category (Sontag, 1982; Green, 1984; Guimond, 1991; Gidley, 2011). Seeking to counter these regional, cultural, and historical biases, the project employs a comparative analysis to determine how the meanings and representations of place and regional identity fluctuate from one region and community to another. Case studies include, but are not limited to, Carl Bigmore's"Between Two Mysteries" (2015), a series that dissects the cinematic layers of the Pacific Northwest derived from popular culture; Nathaniel Grann's investigation of the "empty normalcy" of the Midwestern region in "Midwest Sentimental" (2018); and Bryan Schutmaat's psychological portraiture of mining communities in the American West, as seen in his project "Grays the Mountain Sends" (2013).This research disrupts the traditional canon of American photographic history in two ways: first, it traces and analyses persistent ideologies and iconographies attached to overlooked regions and communities. Second, it expands the canon to consider how such notions have been communicated and challenged by indigenous and women photographers, including for example Megan G. King and Stacy Kranitz, who havecharted the visual legacies of poverty and conservatism in Appalachia. My approach is intersectional,revealing how photographers are contributing to contemporary questions of decolonisation and the politics of representation.Autumn - Spring 2022-23 - Analysis of secondary sources available in the United Kingdom; Extensive research training and academic networking (Midlands Arts Program).Autumn - Spring 2023-24 - Gathering primary material from US archives and interviews with photographers and curators (Research Development Fund); First draft of the thesis completed.Autumn - Spring 2024-25 - Placement at a contemporary art institution; Symposium in collaboration with other M4C candidates (Cohort Development Fund); Second draft of the thesis completed.Autumn 2025 - Final draft of the thesis completed; Examination.