Edward Ruscha, Hudson, Amarillo, Texas, 1962, from Twentysix Gasoline Stations, 1963
Create an art book.

 

Twentysix Gasoline Stations was a book that Ed Ruscha published in April 1963; it contained twenty-six photographs of gasoline stations on his route from his home in Los Angeles to Oklahoma City, where he had grown up and where his mother still lived. Hudson, Amarillo, Texas is one of the photographs in this book.

Look at a few of the photographs in this series. How are they similar or different? Why might Ruscha have wanted to take photographs of all these gas stations?

Have your students think about a journey they each take every day at school, for example, the trip from your classroom to the cafeteria. How would they document that trip in twenty six photographs? What would they show, and what would they leave out? Spend a class period taking these photographs and document the process in a book, either by pasting printed photographs into a notebook or by using a bookmaking service such as blurb.com.

 

A roadside gas station in black and white.  Photo by Edward Ruscha.
A roadside gas station in black and white.  Photo by Edward Ruscha.

Edward Ruscha, Hudson, Amarillo, Texas, 1962, from Twentysix Gasoline Stations, 1963 2004.474

On the Hour

A 30-second online art project:
Maya Man, A Realistic Day In My Life Living In New York City

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