As part of my ongoing series of conversations with photobook artists, I recently sat down with Robert Lyons to discuss his latest monograph, Zero Line Boundary with Zatara Press.
Zero Line Boundary focuses on the dividing line between Canada and the United States. This Northern Border, which is the world’s longest continuous border, is often overlooked in American culture and media, at least when compared to the highly politicized and walled border to our south. Photographing along this quiet, open, and seemingly undefended boundary, Robert Lyons uses black-and-white photographs of the area and its inhabitants to explore themes of nationhood, territory, and surveillance. Weaving together portrait and landscape photographs with thoughtful design, Zero Line Boundary assembles a quiet but complex sequence of metaphor and direct observation. Beyond his photography practice, Robert Lyons also serves as an educator and is the founding director of the Hartford Art School’s Photography MFA program. In full disclosure, he was my grad school advisor and it was nice to talk with him about his work for a change.
