‘58 counties’ is a portrait photography project across the entire state of calfornia.

scope: a native californian, phillm has become captivated with his home state and the diversity of the people that live and visit calfornia. he seeks to show the beautiful diversity within the state by visiting each of the 58 counties in california and take one portrait from each county.

each subject will be approached differently, but always with the intention of telling his or her story in a single photograph. detailed notes will be taken so a written story can accompany each photograph. each portrait will be photographed using a vintage wardflex twin lens reflex camera, captured on beautiful kodak b&w 120 film. phillm will process and scan the film himself while on the road.

the project will be broken up into 6 different phases, from beginning to end. these phases include the travel and capturing of the portraits, the processing and scanning of the film negative, testing and final printing, framing/mounting or the prints, exhibit premier, and finally the travel exhibition and archival phase.

exhibition goal: the goal for exhibition is to have a traveling show of all 58 portraits, in large format print, premiering the exhibition at the state capitol in sacramento. from there the photos would travel to various galleries across the state.

this traveling exhibit would of course have a corresponding photo book and limited edition prints available as well. the plan for the book would be to use a small press, california based publisher. the exhibited prints and the limited edition prints for sale would be made by oakland based master printer john sheridan. a small business, california based framing store would be used to mount and frame the exhibited prints.

phase timeline:

phase 1: bay area/mid california [1 month] estimated cost: $3,150

sonoma, napa, yolo, sacramento, el dorado, marin, solano, amador, alpine, contra costa, san joaquin, calaveras, toulumne, mono, san francisco, alameda, san mateo, santa clara, santa cruz, stanislaus, merced, & mariposa counties.

phase 2: northern california [1 month] estimated cost: $3,730

del norte, siskiyou, modoc, humboldt, trinity, shasta, lassen, tehama, plumas, mendocino, glenn, butte, sierra, lake, colusa, sutter, yuba, nevada, & placer counties.

phase 3: southern california [1 month] estimated cost: $5,750

monterey, san benito, madera, fresno, inyo, kings, tulare, san luis obispo, kern, santa barbara, ventura, los angeles, san bernardino, orange, riverside, san diego, & imperial counties.

phase 4: printing & prep [2 months] estimated cost: $10,200

including test prints, final print, matting & framing, and preparation for premier exhibition.

phase 5: premier [1-2 months] estimated cost: $2,645

including the prep for the opening of the premier exhibit and estimating for a one or two month exhibition period.

phase 6: exhibition/archiving [12-36 months] estimated cost: TBD

once the premier exhibition is complete, the negatives and master files will be archived and the project can travel to various gallery/space over a period of 1-2 years or more.

artist statement: it seems that so much of the headlines we see, tweets we hear about, and stories we read today are focused on dividing us… pulling us apart… reminding us how different we are from our neighbor, and that being different is to be feared… or hated. I grew up in california. it’s a big state. i was raised to be open minded, inclusive, tolerant, but even with all that i forget how big and diverse our state truly is. i am what you would consider a proud californian and i feel that i must celebrate the diversity my beloved state has to offer, especially right now. i believe that in sharing the diverse faces of the state it will help remind everyone that we have far more in common with each other than we realize. the viewer will not be allowed to be distracted by anything else in the frame except for the other human being staring right at them, confronting them head on, reminded them that they are, in fact, human as well, with the same fears, dreams, desires, and frustrations. california is a wonderful place and it’s our differences that give us strength and should be celebrated.

budget: the total budget for this project from start to finish is around $25,000. phillm will use small, california based companies for all production needs and on the road he plans on eating at small non-chain establishments and stay in locally owned hotels. phillm will gladly take any donations for this project and will seek various grants and art funds to help raise the money needed to complete this project.