In the Devil’s land

04 February 2021   •  
Written by Lou Tsatsas
In the Devil’s land

In The Devil’s Promenade, photographers Antone Dolezal and Lara Shipley take us to the heart of the Ozarks, a rural area of the United States, the cradle of ancient folk legends. A captivating study of the land, mankind and their evolution.

In the Ozarks – a mountainous region of the United States – it is said that a strange luminous orb sways along the Devil’s promenade, a mysterious territory, surveyed by the Devil himself. Venturing there, hypnotised by the glow of this globe, the inhabitants would run the risk of having their souls taken away. Popular legend, passed down from generation to generation, this frightening tale has fascinated photographers Antone Dolezal and Lara Shipley, both born in the region.

Inspired by atypical mythologies, rural cultures and communities and the immersive power of stories, the two artists ventured into the Ozarks, the land of their childhood, to capture this strange floating light. “I grew up in Northeastern part of Oklahoma, near the Great Plains. I spent many nights around the campfire, listening to my father telling these folk tales. The Devil’s Promenade is about us reconnecting with our past, there is a  real magical quality to the stories we heard growing up”, says Antone Dolezal.

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

Exploring, questioning, blurring boundaries

Imagined in the form of a book, the series mixes photography, archives and folklore elements. A way of exploring, questioning and blurring the boundaries between imagination and reality, past and present. “We wanted to create the world of these stories through our photographs and make it feel real enough to immerse the viewer. My background is in journalism, and this felt like a new method for storytelling”, confides Lara Shipley. Playing with the book format – itself often seen as a collection of imaginary stories – the photographers paint a portrait of a community rocked by these legends, and erect a meticulous backdrop.

“We played with different photographic genres. This includes a mixture of documentary and environmental portraits of individuals living off the land, musicians, artists and religious happenings such a tent revivals and spirit healings. Always with the aim of presenting the diversity of the Ozarks to the reader”, continues Antone Dolezal. Linked together, the numerous narrative strata unfold and construct a universe inspired by memories, childish fears, customs and fantasy. But how can we discern reality from fantasy? What does our reluctance to erase all traces of fantasy from our existence reveal about us?

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

Are we really in control of our lives?

“These customs say a lot about the region. Why believe the Devil lives in the woods near your house? It was a question that intrigued us because it felt so fitting with Ozark culture, where talk of the Devil is so common, such a big part of religious belief and daily life”

, explains the photographer. For the artists, this folklore reads like a metaphor for the notion of choice: Which road to take? Where do we come from? Are we really in control of our lives? Anchored in an isolated territory, where nature still plays an important role, The Devil’s Promenade documents the existence of a community far from the big cities, a world in perpetual evolution. There, in the heart of the forests and mountains, beliefs and fears endure and govern our existence.

“Growing up in the Ozarks without the Internet was really a thing. Getting access to music and books took effort. There wasn’t this expectation that you could have an ambitious career. People tend to do what their parents did. The majority don’t go on to college. Most stay close to home”, Lara Shipley says. While the region is modernising, of course, just like the rest of the country, its spatial isolation allows traditions to endure, making the Ozarks a unique cradle, where magic and contemporaneity coexist. “With The Devil’s Promenade, we wanted to celebrate and continue this tradition, while also connecting the lineage of these stories with the current realities of this space”, Antone Dolezal sums up. An exciting excursion into the mysterious American landscape.

 

The Devil’s Promenade, Overlapse Editions, £35, 152 p.

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal et Lara Shipley

© Antone Dolezal and Lara Shipley

Explore
France 98, Luke Skywalker and street photography: Laurent le Crabe's Chinese portrait
France 98, Luke Skywalker and street photography: Laurent le Crabe’s Chinese portrait
"As the son of a printer, I was immersed from an early age in a culture of images and colour", says Laurent le Crabe, who, as he grew up...
28 July 2021   •  
Written by Anaïs Viand
Macron, Brexit and family albums: Ed Alcock's Chinese portrait
Macron, Brexit and family albums: Ed Alcock’s Chinese portrait
Portrait photographer for many news publications – Le Monde, El País, the New York Times – documentary photographer and member of the...
22 July 2021   •  
Written by Lou Tsatsas
"While everyone knows how to draw a penis and testicles, a vulva or a clitoris is a problem"
“While everyone knows how to draw a penis and testicles, a vulva or a clitoris is a problem”
With Récupérer Nos Corps (Getting our bodies back, ed.), a project combining written testimonies and photographs, non-binary artist La...
14 July 2021   •  
Written by Lou Tsatsas
Belgium, pasta taster, and dangerous nipples: Charlotte Abramow's Chinese portrait
Belgium, pasta taster, and dangerous nipples: Charlotte Abramow’s Chinese portrait
She is Belgian, but lives in France. She has been challenging the clichés associated with female beauty and celebrating bodies in her...
11 July 2021   •  
Written by Anaïs Viand
Our latest articles
View all articles
Readers picks #355
Readers picks #355
Alexander Kaller and Stephen Sillifant, our readers picks #355, both escape the frenzy of our world to produce peaceful images – a...
30 August 2021   •  
Written by Fisheye Magazine
British seaside, round animals and Céline Sciamma: Max Miechowski's Chinese portrait
British seaside, round animals and Céline Sciamma: Max Miechowski’s Chinese portrait
Trained as a musician, British artist Max Miechowski turned to photography after a long trip to Southeast Asia. Portraits...
25 August 2021   •  
Written by Lou Tsatsas
Instagram selection #312
Instagram selection #312
Through portraits or landscapes, the artists of our Instagram selection #312 never stop experimenting. All of them seek new textures and...
24 August 2021   •  
Written by Joachim Delestrade
The labourer who turned mud into silver
The labourer who turned mud into silver
With Zilverbeek (Silver creek), Lucas Leffler explores the myth of a worker who made his wealth from the mud that lined the bottom of a...
23 August 2021   •  
Written by Finley Cutts