The Underground Railroad Comes to Vibrant Life in a New Book from Mississippi

Passage on the Underground Railroad is an arresting book of color photographs by Stephen Marc, a professor of art in the Herberger College of Art at Arizona State University. Click here for a sample of these remarkable photographs: http://herbergercollege.asu.edu/marc/montages.html -- some are montages and others are composites, and you can view samples of both on this cool website. Mississippi aptly describes Marc’s digital photographs as “thought-provoking, unconventional, and haunting.” Detailed captions and multilayered narrative photographs weave together various elements from the landscape of slavery. The freedom sites along the Underground Railroad are also depicted in this book, and there is an essay by Diane Miller, director of the Network to Freedom division of the National Park Service. There is also an interview with Marc by Carla Williams, editor of the journal exposure. An essay by Keith Griffler, a professor of African American Studies at SUNY - Buffalo, rounds out the book. The horror and historical drama of slavery is rendered powerfully in this book, as Marc embarked on a seven year journey photographing the route of runaway slaves. This is one photographer’s evocative interpretation of the history and places along the slave’s path to freedom. This book is a potent combination of photographic innovation and historical documentation.