American dreams - Ian Brown

A powerful, moving photography collection of Americans from all walks of life paired with their handwritten statements about their American dreams.In the lead up to the 2008 presidential election, Canadian photographer Ian Brown, fascinated by the idea of the "American dream," set out to photograph Americans and document what it meant to them. Brown traveled across the country in an old truck and began knocking on people's doors; meeting them at town halls, diners, and factories; and approaching them on main streets in small towns. In addition to shooting people's portraits, he asked them to write down--on a piece of paper, in their own handwriting--whatever their "American dream" was or what it meant to them. Twelve years, 80,000 miles, 50 states, and more than 300 portraits later, American Dreams is a culmination of this incredible project, featuring 175 portraits of people of all backgrounds paired with their handwritten "American dreams." Beautifully packaged, and inclusive of a multitude of all ages, races, identities, classes, religions, and ideologies, American Dreams is a poignant, defining look at American life and identity during one of the most important moments in our history.