A Road Trip Journal (Hardcover)

by Stephen Shore (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Stephen Shore is one of the most influential photographers of the twentieth century, best known for his photographs of vernacular America taken in the early 1970s two bodies of work entitled American Surfaces and Uncommon Places. These projects paved the way for future photographers of the 'ordinary' and 'everyday' such as Martin Parr, Thomas Struth, and Nan Goldin. Shore is one of the most important artists working today, and his prints are included in collections of eminent museums and galleries around the world.

On July 3, 1973, Stephen Shore set out on the road again. This road trip marked an important point in his career, as he was coming to the tail end of American Surfaces and embarking on a body of work that is known as Uncommon Places. While traveling, in addition to taking photographs, Shore also distributed a set of postcards that he had made and printed himself. While passing through Amarillo, Texas, Shore selected ten of his own photographs of places of note, such as Doug's Barb-B-Que and the Potter County Court House, and designed the back of the cards to look like a typical generic postcard. He sent these images to a well-known postcard printer and ordered 5,600 copies of each card. Then, driving from town to town, Shore surreptitiously inserted his own cards into postcard racks in stores across the country, mixing his own work with 'real' postcards and giving unsuspecting shopkeepers new stock free of charge.

In a deadpan, unemotional style, Shore's month-long journal itemizes where he stayed, what he ate, which television programs he watched, what photographs he took, how many miles he drove, and how many postcards he distributed on each day of his trip. The journal also includes postcards of the towns where he stayed as well as some of his own photographs alongside hotel, restaurant, and gas station receipts. As he traveled, recording his experiences in his journal, Shore photographed the towns and cities through which he passed, the people he met, the food he ate, the beds he slept in, and even the toilets he 'encountered', from New York to California and back again.

A Road Trip Journal marks the turning point between two major bodies of work in Shore's career and includes some classic portraits from this pioneering color photographer. Each page of the journal is reproduced exactly and bound in a book that matches the format of the original book down to its cover. Following this, every photograph taken over the course of the trip is also featured, whether a perfect composition or a slightly fogged negative of the same scene. A map marks Shore's journey and his own text on the history of the road trip in America is also included. The book also contains reproductions of a number of postcards that Shore made on his trip, allowing the reader the chance to tear them out and use them, or keep them as a piece of 1970s Shore memorabilia.

A Road Trip Journal is a highly collectible publication for any photo book collector, photography enthusiast or student, or anyone with an interest in American culture of the 1970s. This limited edition book numbered and signed by the photographer is an exciting addition to Phaidon's ever-growing, highly popular Shore list.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Phaidon Press Inc.; Limited Collector's Ed edition (June 25, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0714848018
• ISBN-13: 978-0714848013
• Product Dimensions: 17.2 x 12.1 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #583,996 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FROM SHORE TO SHORE, March 21, 2009

By	Robin Benson - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The book covers an interesting period in Stephen Shore's creativity, it captures the time between the 35mm snaps of `American Surfaces' and more formal 8x10 camera style of `Uncommon Places'.

The 296 pages are split into two sections: 200 devoted to Shore's journal of his trip from July 3, 1973 to August 22 1973 and the remainder reproduce every photo from the trip. The journal section reproduces each day's activities: meals and what was eaten; the name of the motel/hotel; what was watched on TV or movies seen; how many Amarillo, Texas postcards were distributed in places other than Amarillo (5,600 of a ten card set, shown on three pages); the location of any exposures.

The pages also include various bits of printed ephemera: motel receipts; ticket stubs; newspapers clippings and fifty-six credit card receipts for gas (credited to the account of Shore Investment Co); and lots of postcards. All this is reproduced in a 200 screen on a matt paper.

The photo section, printed on a good quality matt art has all the images from the trip arranged chronologically and here are some quite stunning images. A couple of my favorite Shore photos are included: 'Bay Movie House' in Ashland, Wisconsin on July 9 (dinner was steak, watched NBC nightly and Duluth local news) and 'US 30 East Canton, Ohio' on July 5 (breakfast was fried eggs, dinner fried clams and watched kung-fu on TV). All of the exterior shots of the man-made landscape work so well because of Shore's excellent framing.

Between the journal and photo pages there is a four page insert, printed on pink paper, where Shore writes about the fascination of creative folk for car trips across America, those seduced include photographers Cartier-Bresson, Robert Frank, Shore and writers like Kerouac and Nabokov.

The book is more than a collection of wonderful photos because the details of Stephen Shore's life while on the road make the images that much more intriguing. Oh yes, the book comes in a rather superior, sturdy slipcase and as this is a limited edition I think you'll find it worthwhile to check out the price across the web.

***SEE SOME INSIDE PAGES by clicking 'customer images' under the cover.