Shawn Lane told me he would rather live anywhere but Mountain Grove, Missouri. He was born and raised there, along with 60% of the town’s residents, and despite scarce employment and recreation opportunities, is putting his dreams on hold to raise two young daughters: Claudia 3, and Natalie 2.
Mountain Grove is tucked away in the mountainous Ozark Plateau. Its topography reflects the cohesion between the physical and emotional landscapes of rural culture. Daily responsibilities in work and home life are interwoven with rolling hills on either side of county roads that stretch farther than the horizon. Everything blends effortlessly as acres of deep woods lead to steep cliffs; familiar in Midwestern memory.
After returning from his time serving as a wheeled vehicle mechanic in the 112th Signal Battalion Special Operations Airborne in Iraq, Shawn settled in Texas to pursue work on power lines. When his partner’s drug use began to hurt family life, he returned home to support his children. In a town with an average age of 42, where poverty rates and reports of violent crime are higher than the national average, Shawn remains determined to build a future for his family with help from his mother and old friends.
Having grown up in a small town in Iowa, I admire rural America. I understand the absence of support for geographically undervalued places on a social, economic and emotional level. With these photographs I strive to gain a greater understanding of the cognitive and physiological impacts that face families who build lives in remote regions.
As I expand on this body of work I am pushed beyond limits, presumptions and comfort zones of my own midwestern experience. I am confronted with issues impacting the people of Mountain Grove as they live in proximity to substance use, generational poverty, economic decline and social isolation while loving one another each day.
Brooklynn made this work during her time at The Missouri Photo Workshop (MPW 70) in September of 2018. Iterations of this project have been awarded an Honorable Mention by the 2020 International Photography Awards, (IPA) for the Non-Professional, Deeper Perspective category and made the 2019 Kolga Tbilisi Photo Award Shortlist where it was exhibited internationally in Tbilisi, Georgia.