Photographer David Eustace is one of USA Network’s honored “Characters” from their esteemed Character Project, an ongoing initiative committed to celebrating distinctive people from all walks of life that add a richness to the American art scene.
Richard E. Pike, retired archaeologist, owner and founder of the Museum of the American West, Montrose Colorado, by David Eustace
The project was initiated by network President Bonnie Hammer, the creative president of NBCU Cable Entertainment and Universal Cable production as she reinforced the Network’s “Characters Welcome” brand with the support of non-profit photography organization, Aperture Foundation,
Also a photographer, Hammer has had her work displayed in several galleries and published in Time, the Boston Herald, the Los Angeles Times and various Houghton-Mifflin and Little Brown books.
Hammer has assembled a team of 11 world-class photographers to capture the character of America today. David Eustace was one of them.
Glaswegian David Eustace’s beginnings in the Provanmill & Riddrie area were unusual for a photographer. He began his career as a prison officer in Barlinnie, Scotland’s most notorious prison.
Eustace returned to school in 1989 to complete a bachelor of arts honors degree course in photography and fine art at Napier University, Edinburgh, graduating with distinction.
Taking the Agfa Student Bursary award, David was the sole U.K. representative to be invited to attend the International Student Photo symposium in Poznan, Poland.
Eustace’s approach to portraiture is stripped down, lacking artifice or a staged feel. His work shows directness and captures a feeling that cannot be expressed easily in words.
Lindsay Benner, performer at Pier 39, San Francisco, by David Eustace
He has found great success in his photography exhibitions, including the Deutsche Bank–sponsored EGO exhibition (which was the subject of a thirty-minute BBC documentary) in Cork St., London, which was described as “beautiful, calm portraiture, and a true rarity these days.”
These exhibited portraits were shown at the Glasgow Art Club too. This was the first time in the club’s 150-year history that it solely exhibited a photography show.
Eustace’s work has been shown worldwide, including the main arena at the Groningen Photo Festival in the Netherlands.
Commercially Eustace has also made his mark, commissioned by major magazines and was also a contributing photographer at British GQ magazine from 1993 to 1997.
His list of subjects includes Sir Paul McCartney, Sophia Loren, Sir John Mills, Eve Arnold, Dame Judy Dench, James Earl Jones, Milton Glaser, Ewan McGregor, John Hurt, Alec Baldwin and Radiohead.
Not limited to just portraiture, Eustace’s photography explores fashion, landscape and documentary work - all widely recognized.
But it is his “Highway 50” project that has spawned a smallscreen documentary, narrated by journalist Tom Brokaw, which is getting major notice.
Eustace traveled the entire 3,000-mile coast-to-coast expanse of American Highway 50, photographing people he met along the way. These photos are a visual love letter of sorts to the oldest trans-continental highway in America.
Brokaw signed on for the multiplatform documentary project at NBC Universal, the TV documentary, "Highway 50: A Road Trip Across America" co-produced by USA and NBC, inspired by Eustace's work.
USA is publishing Eustace's photos in an upcoming book, "American Character: A Photographic Journey," for which Brokaw penned the foreword.
Eustace is working on his first short film, One Mile of Nothing, to be filmed in Arizona and Utah, and is about to finish his first book, Love Letters. He spends his time between New York City and Glasgow.
David Eustace shared some of his thoughts about the Highway 50 project with USA.
“Photography has afforded me many luxuries in life, but probably none more valuable than the excuse it has given me to approach complete strangers whom I find interesting and ask if they would allow me to take
“Most of these encounters last for a relatively short time; the memories, however, surpass what is caught either digitally or on film. For Character Project, my intention was straightforward enough: I wanted to explore the diversity of people connected by a single road and create a body of work comprised primarily of portraits juxtaposed against varied landscapes. I chose to follow Highway 50, an artery that stretches over three thousand miles and connects the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. It is often referred to as ‘The Loneliest Road in America’ or ‘The Backbone of America,’ he adds, “This old road cuts through twelve states and four state capitals, rarely intersecting with newer freeways as it stretches from coast to coast. It winds across the deserts, mountains, plains, and forests, and it bears witness to both the old and the new United States.”
Sandra Alayon, San Francisco, by David Eustace
He shared some of his notable encounters. “I met a man who was born in Texas and grew up on a cattle ranch in Idaho before moving out to Carmel,
Eustace has so many wonderful recollections, and talked to Monsters and Critics about his work.
Most obvious question, how did a Scotsman come to find out about old route 50?
David Eustace: I have been living in New York City for the past eiht years and have been coming here on a regular basis for the past 13 years, so the USA is not that new to me.
Through my work I get to travel. The Highway 50 project was something I had wanted to start on for many years now and thankfully USA Network came along and gave me the reason to eventually get the project up and running.
What fascinates me about this route is the many differing people and landscapes it passes through connected by this single road a single language with many varying voices. I also was drawn by the fact it largely remains unaffected by the newer freeway system and links Ocean to Ocean.
With regards to being a Scotsman crossing over the US ---This should come as no surprise as the history and of this country and its Scottish heritage are so very linked. Ex President Woodrow Wilson said it all when he stated, 'Every line of strength in American history is a line colored with Scottish blood.'
Along Highway 50 the amount of towns named after Scottish villages, towns and cities pays testament to other Scots who pioneered this road so many years ago.
I also had to smile just recently...ironically at lack of credit... when Tom Brokaw went on the Today show to promote his new project Highway 50 after being inspired by my images / project, also entitled Highway 50. So perhaps we Scots can still play a part in influencing how one views this great land?
People in Colorado consider route 50 their backbone and most historic road. Tell me your impressions of the states starting with California.
David Eustace: Each state is individual and each has much to offer, far too complicated for a short conversation...so how about I simple choose a word or two to describe my impression of each state.
Of course this will a massive generalization and these comments are based solely on the short time I had in each state.
CALIFORNIA: Too diverse to generalize
NEVADA: Honest and straightforward
UTAH: Magic something special and spiritual about the empty desserts of Utah.
COLORADO: The landscape reminded me so much of Scotland just higher above sea level.
KANSAS: Lots of sky, lots of flat empty land and very few people, however the ones I met were all extremely kind.
MISSOURRI: I found Kansas city (Misssourri) had a real energy about it with a good arts scene and was inspired by the work Bob Cassilly is doing with The City Arts Museum in St Louis.
INDIANA: Shot the cover of the book in a Madison. Nice little town.
OHIO: Only seen a little of the college town Athens and met a couple of good kids there.
WEST VIRGINIA: Loved crossing the Appalachian mountains saw very little people.
VIRGINIA: Love the open and meeting Patsy Clines old neighbour.
WASHINGTON DC: A capital city
MARYLAND: Calm quiet and the end of a long journey.
Tony Allison, U.S. Forestry Service firefighter and snow board instructor, Lake Tahoe, California, by David Eustace
I noticed in several of your shots, the backgrounds and surrounding backdrops to your subjects often mimicked what they had pattern- wise in their garment, or their overall appearance. Talk about deliberate (or not) staging.
David Eustace: It was my intention to make this project as 'production free' as possible. What you see is what you get with the exception of Danny, the kid on the cover of the book with the flag.
There was no planned wardrobe or location. I would simply either walk along the street or drive past someone and there and then ask them to take their photograph and where they stood.
Some of these encounters would last for only 20 minutes and I think the longest was just short of 2 hours. All the sitters are wearing exactly what they were wearing and documented as such.
With the cover shot of Danny and the flag, the day before I had popped into an old antique store and saw the flag selling for $10 ---- I gave the lady $20 and this was the only prop or constructed image in the entire portfolio and even with this I simply asked Danny to put it around his shoulders and stand in a doorway.
As I mentioned in the book, I wanted to keep this portfolio as pure and honest and void of any gimmicks as I could. The entire crew on this journey was myself and one assistant.
As for retouching there wasn't any except for one instance where a small tattoo was removed from Danny's arm and only after I asked him about it and he told me he regretted having it done when he was younger so in this instance I decided it would be appropriate and still hold true to my aim to keep the portfolio as simple and honest as possible.
Sadly, these days in photography it seems retouching or image manipulation or over construction or formulated is almost perceived as being the normal. So the photographs you see in this portfolio are a combination of good luck, hard work, experience and great friend who was my assistant and of course the most important thing the trust of the people I photographed.
Color also is a tool that makes you work so distinguishable from other photographers. Tell me about the importance of (or lack thereof) when putting someone in portraiture?
David Eustace: When a photographer makes a portrait of someone, of course it is influenced by the photographers personality and how he or she feels that day. I try to keep my work very straightforward and simply. I see the shot as a documentation of that person on that particular day. A record.
As for color, the majority of my work now is in color but it used to be the opposite, where most of my work...in particular editorial work when I was a contributing photographer at Conde Nast / GQ was primarily black and white.
The only color I really shot back then was covers which had to be color images. I used to always print my own work - black and white - and now that a computer can actively replace the darkroom enlarger; I suppose it was having this control over my images and how they should look is the main reason I now shoot mainly in color.
My Scot friends tell me their good-natured (sometimes not so) rivalry between Edinburgh and Glasgow, the north and the south of Scotland. In the US personalities, cultural tics, eccentricities abound. Are you a fan of the east coast, west coast, South or North of the US? Tell me your feelings, impressions based on who you have met and the vibe of each place you passed through.
David Eustace: Your friends are right about Scotland, there is a constant rivalry but generally very good humored, but as a nation we stick together and become one and that reminds me a little of the US.
Each state is so very different as are people, but they are still so very proud...and rightly so to be under the one flag.
I think these differences are also largely due to the size of the US and therefore no different than Australia, Russia or China. There is a common language here but the same words often mean different things.
Nevada and say, Washington DC, are so very different but apart from stating the obvious, the industries, landscapes, politics, recreation facilities, health care, or should I say lack of it, all of which plays it's role in separating yet attracting a certain type of person to a specific location.
It is that diversity that makes the country wonderful and linked under the banner the United States of America. So I couldn't really described myself a fan of just one state as each offers differing things.
What gear do you use?
David Eustace: I use the right camera for the right job. This project saw me work with the Hasselblad H2 and Phase One P30 digital back.
I shot on cards and downloaded to a hard drive as we travelled along. In the studio I usually shoot tethered simply because you have a controlled environment on this job it was very much there and then, take it or miss it. I started using digital a few years back for practical reasons.
I was traveling around the world on a job and from New York City we went via, Brazil, France, Russia, China, Korea and back to New York and taking film on a trip like this could have caused so many nightmares.
So digital works for me but sadly it is not always used for the right reasons. I also work with Canon equipment.
Equipment is important but it is and will always be to me simply a tool that lets me capture what I see. I have just finished a book where the majority of the project was shot on a small point and press camera.
For me it's not about what you capture it with but what you capture.
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