Background information
On a pilgrimage to visit William EGGLESTON in Memphis, Tennessee, two well-known photographers who collaborate here under the pseudonym Obvious & Ordinary present their respective views of 'America.' Although some of the work nods toward William EGGLESTON, the distinct aesthetic sensibilities of these two artists come through loud and clear. In an effort to foreground the photographs rather than the personalities, 'Obvious & Ordinary' wish to remain unnamed.
Content
Yet the saturated color close-ups of garish food and consumer culture, together with the moody taciturn black-and-white views of decaying cities and suburban detritus, taken respectively by a Briton and an American known for these very types of images, makes it easy to figure out the source of the imagery. What's more important, however, is the conceptual gesture of the photographs and the book itself, which manages to be humble in stature, but rich in content.