“National Character” by Photographer John Sanderson

A series capturing the shifting social landscapes of the United States by American photographer John Sanderson. Sanderson’s work traces themes of impermanence and expansion that speak to the tensions created by the shifting priorities and distractions of our modern world. For Sanderson, the gap between the post-industrial age and our increasingly technological one imbues these photographs with a certain melancholia—figures and spaces on the verge of irrelevance. And yet, there is hope and charm too:

“The commonplace has become all too common, a veritable exercise in the predictable: strip malls, franchised restaurants, banks, and a gas station on every corner of a four way intersection. It would be false to say I don’t rely on these conveniences, but I am still trying to figure out why I don’t picture them. In searching for examples of our national identity, I often exit major byways and instead travel intimate two lane roads in searching for that spiritual topography so indicative of postclectic American Places.”