A Road Trip Told Through Photograph
Few themes capture the American imagination like the open road. David Campany’s book The Open Road: Photography and the American Road Trip shows how generations of photographers turned highways, small towns, motels, and neon-lit gas stations into lasting works of art.
This book is not a travel guide. Instead, it is a record of how the American road trip shaped photography — and how photography shaped our idea of the road trip. Published by Aperture, the hardcover includes more than 300 pages of images and essays.
What the Book Covers
Campany begins with an essay called A Short History of the Long Road. It sets the stage for the road trip as both cultural symbol and photo subject. From there, the book highlights the work of well-known photographers. For example, Robert Frank’s classic The Americans defined the road trip in black and white, while Stephen Shore captured the colorful scenery of everyday travel.
William Eggleston turned ordinary roadside scenes into fine art. Meanwhile, Alec Soth carried the style forward with Sleeping by the Mississippi, which presents a modern look at the open road. Across the highways, Justine Kurland showed cars, roads, and the freedom they offer.
In addition, each section gives background about the photographer’s journey, style, and findings along the road.
Book cover of David Campany’s The Open Road: Photography and the American Road Trip.
The Road’s Lasting Influence
The American road trip has always meant more than just getting from one place to another. For some, it shows freedom and exploration. For others, it reveals loneliness, decline, or forgotten corners of the country. As a result, The Open Road captures all of these sides, showing how a camera can turn a simple drive into an important record of American life.
Readers interested in roadside Americana, fading motels, or the myth of the highway will find much to enjoy here. In fact, the book also reminds us how quickly the American landscape changes — and why photographs are so important for preserving it.
Book Details
• Title: The Open Road: Photography and the American Road Trip
• Author: David Campany
• Publisher: Aperture (2014)
• Format: Hardcover, 336 pages
• ISBN: 978-1-59711-240-6
Final Thoughts
If you enjoy our Shuttered Americana series here on Retro Highway, this book fits right alongside it. At the same time, Campany’s collection is a visual journey that mirrors the fading signs and roadside gems we document each week. As a result, it is less about one trip and more about how the road itself has inspired photographers for decades.
Whether you are a photography fan, a traveler at heart, or someone who loves the stories highways tell, The Open Road is a book worth exploring. In fact, it may even spark ideas for your own adventures.
Safe travels, RJ
The Open Road: Photography and the American Road Trip by David Campany
is available on Amazon. Other books by David Campany include: Art and Photography (2003), The Cinematic (2007), Photography and Cinema (2008), Gasoline (2013), Walker Evans: the Magazine Work (2014), A Handful of Dust (2015), On Photographs (2020)
You might also enjoy: Ghost Towns of the Southwest — Jim Hinckley, Pretty Boy: The Life and Times of Charles Arthur Floyd — Michael Wallis, Road Trip: Roadside America, From Custard’s Last Stand to the Wigwam Restaurant — Richard Longstreth, Roadside America — John Margolies, Roadside America: The Automobile and the American Dream — Lucinda Lewis, Overground Railroad: The Green Book and the Roots of Black Travel in America — Candacy Taylor, The Negro Motorist Green Book — Victor Hugo Green, American Autopia — Gabrielle Esperdy, Motoring: The Highway Experience in America — John A. Jakle & Keith A. Sculle, The Great American Retro Road Trip — Rolando Pujol,
