Meridian, Mississippi

This photo is part of a serious of photographs taken by Stephen Shore, an American photographer who took over 229 prints of a cross-country road-trip he went on. This photo is titled Meridian, Mississippi. Shore titled all of his photographs by the places that they were taken. It gives the viewer a sense of the area that he was in. Now, to the viewer, their idea of Meridian, Mississippi is this young woman standing in front of racks of cigarettes. The studium in this photograph is the story it tells. This woman probably worked at a gas station somewhere in this unknown town of Meridian. Her expression is innocent and sweet, her hair simply done, and her outfit plain. As per the definition of the studium, I assessed Shore’s intentions of the photograph. His belief was that everything he came across was art. I imagine he was stopping off to get gas or possibly some snacks at this gas station, and briefly met this woman. She is, and will now forever be the picture of Meridian, Mississippi.

When it comes to punctum for me, it is not an object of the photo but the way the photo was taken; the flash. The way the flash creates a shine on the boxes of cigarettes, the way it highlights the oil on the woman’s face, and creates a shadow behind her. If you look closely you can also see that the flash gave her some red eye. If you ever have the misfortune of taking a photography class, you’ll learn that flash is a delicate thing. Most professional photographers believe that flash is an easy way to wash out a picture. It’s not a sign of professional well-educated photography to make the flash self-evident. For me though, that’s the beauty of this photo. He’s taking a simple photograph of a simple woman in a simple town and using the simplest form of photography. This photograph is not beautiful, it isn’t well organized nor is it of an intriguing subject. It’s just a photo taken of a once anonymous person in a once anonymous town. I find nothing more beautiful than that.