Gift of John Andrew MacMahon, Class of 1995

Mitch Epstein's "American Power" series began as an assignment for the New York Times Magazine in 2003. He was asked to document the demolition of Cheshire, Ohio following a buy-out of property owners by the American Electric Power Company. The company's conditions were that the residents depart permanently and never complain to the media or in court if they got sick from environmental contaminants that emanated from the AEP plant.

Beginning in 2004, Epstein traveled to twenty-five states over a period of five years. His provocative photographs vividly illustrate the necessary yet uneasy relationships that exist between large energy companies and the public they serve.

Epstein's work on "American Power" led him to collaborate with author Susan Bell on WHATISAMERICANPOWER.COM. This internet and public art project "...asks everyone to look harder at their daily relationship to energy [and to] heighten awareness of the toll that energy production and consumption take on our economy, security, health, and natural resources."