Mississippi Blacktop:
Long Road to the Blues
by Ming C. Lowe
Lowe’s work is a tour of notable places and people in the tough landscape of the Mississippi Delta that recalls blues legends and the pre-Civil Rights south. The show of 63 black and white photographs documents the people, pool halls, juke joints, historic places and famous crossroads along Highway 61 in and around the town of Clarksdale, Mississippi.
“Blues Highway” 61 runs through the heart of the Mississippi Delta and has a rich history as an important source of blues music. It has been referred to in many songs and remembered as the site of many historic events and places.
Lowe uncovers the strange soul of the delta…her manipulation of light and dark gives some of the photos a vague luminescent patina, that subtly enhances the image but never overshadows the gritty reality of the place
