Distressed Motorist/Tire

Jay Wolke embarked on his first large-scale photographic project in 1981, titled Along the Divide (1981-1985). The color photographs in this series revolve around the Dan Ryan Expressway, a multi-lane, heavily trafficked highway that runs through densely populated parts of Chicago. By his own description, Wolke set out to examine the Dan Ryan as a "massive expression of the urban lexicon." His photographs are not simply about the monolithic construction itself, but also the ecosystem of human and industrial elements that has formed around it and in response to it. Wolke trains his lens on such subjects as buildings near the highways, homeless people living under overpasses, drivers in their cars, stranded motorists, and the chaotic aftermath of car accidents.