Along the Ohio

From its formation in Pittsburgh to its confluence with the Mississippi River at Cairo, Illinois, the Ohio River passes through a landscape that is, for photographer Andrew Borowiec, "both exotic and authentically American". Borowiec's 80 duotone images explore the cultural landscape of this region, presenting clapboard houses and white picket fences, pickup trucks and rusting sedans, back yards with satellite dishes or with barbecue grills made from 55 gallon oil drums. The pictures concentrate on the common scenes of everyday life and work, especially in the small, mostly blue-collar towns along the Ohio. The book illustrates the condition of a region that once was essential to the economic vitality of the United States. Many factories, once a source of prosperity, lie idle. Houses and banks stand boarded up and rusting machinery litters the river's edge. But Borowiec's camera finds a resilient strength, even among deteriorating homes - carefully mowed lawns or freshly painted fences are signs that residents still strive for pride and the American Dream, despite their less-than-ideal circumstances.