In this monograph, Catherine Opie juxtaposes her monumental series of intimate and political photographs, In and Around Home, with images from her pre-millennial road trip, 1999.
Both of these contrasting takes on iconic American subjects, through the landscape and snapshot forms, are political in nature, representing as they do the perspective of a gay artist, mother and activist at an important moment in her career. Both are deeply personal, and provide the viewer a unique opportunity to see both the private and public worlds of the artist through her own eyes. The idea to pair the two bodies of work was deliberate - vital that they be considered together.
The publication features A.M. Homes (Safety of Objects, Music for Torching)--an author long admired by the artist --to write in response to the work. Homes's original, previously unpublished short story Let the Dog Drive is included here.