Color photography, once thought of as the crass, poor cousin of the more aesthetically pleasing monochrome, is now firmly established as a valid art form. We have William Eggleston and his vivid images of rural America to thank for that.
Born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1939, Eggleston returned there after stretches in Mississippi, and has lived there ever since. It is these environs that Eggleston has consistently drawn upon for his iconic imagery of otherwise overlooked aspects of southern rural life.
After taking up black-and-white photography in the early 1960s, by the end of the decade Eggleston was one of the first fine-art photographers to work solely in color. His early 1970s discovery of the dye-transfer process — usually the reserve of advertising and other commercial work — allowed him fine control over his work and the ability to create rich, brilliant colors.