American Lens — Discovering America —

Early 1990s American car culture. A dog wearing sunglasses in a car. Early 1990s America—a horse peeking out from a trailer. Early 1990s American car culture—a triple trailer. 1991 American West road trip—a convoy of 18-wheelers. SAFEWAY—Early 1990s American streetscape—a supermarket. 1990s America from above—a residential neighborhood.

Westbound, Then Skyward

A Chronicle of the American West, 1990 – 1992

 
 
I drove west with a map in hand. Before long, I was at the controls myself.
 
Between the ground and the sky, I witnessed a culture and an era—and kept a record of them.

The Early 1990s

 
A time before the internet, GPS, and smartphones.
I drove by paper maps and captured the landscape, one frame at a time on film.
America as seen from the ground and from the sky.
Now, 35 years later, I retrace the everyday life, landscapes, culture, and memories of that era.

Early 1990s American West—a roadside sign.
Early 1990s American West—a streetscape.
A Small Airport cafe in America, 1991
Everyday Life in 1990s America
Moments | Discovering 1990s America, One Old Photograph at a Time
Road Trip | Wandering the American West by Car, Guided by Paper Maps
Flight Log | A Record of Small Airports and Flights in 1990s America
Discovering America | Tracing the Lost Culture of 1990s America
Cessna 172, photographed in 1991

About：American Lens

American Lens is a project dedicated to preserving the America of the early 1990s for the future.

 
From 1990 to 1992, I lived in California, traveled across the American West by car, and flew light aircraft to document it from the sky.
What remains is more than a record of tourist destinations. I captured everyday America on film—the streets, people and their lives, roads, airports, and vast open landscapes.
Now, 35 years later, I revisit what I saw and felt, unraveling the photographs and memories to bring that America of the past into the future.

1990年代のアメリカのガソリンスタンド
1990年代のアメリカ西部の道路
1990年代のアメリカの空に伸びる飛行機雲
1990年代のアメリカ西部の荒野