Sign of The Times: The Small Town Story Of Covid-19
When the Covid-19 spread started in America,the cameras seemed to turn to the outbreaks in major cities around the United States. I saw tons of imagery of people getting tests and wearing masks but I felt as if the small towns weren’t being given. any media attention.
Soon after, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker would declared a stay at home order for all Illinois residents. It was at that moment that I decided to pick up my camera and photograph the story of Covid-19 in small towns. The real challenge was figuring out a way to photograph a subject that could not be seen by camera nor the human eye. I realized early on that the written word was used seemingly everywhere to give directions for social distancing, personal care, inspiration, and business closure via window signs.
At first I traveled town to town for weeks photographing window signs in businesses storefronts. After working on this concept for quite some time my idea for the story started to evolve and I realized that I needed to take it in a new direction by bringing more humanity into the story. I traveled to an open air Covid-19 testing site and later photographed among protestors trying to reopen Illinois. I was blessed to meet wonderful people and build a story that I am extremely proud of.
I hope you enjoy my photo story below, Sign Of The Times: The Small Town Covid-19 Story.
