A follow-up to my body of work The Great Recession (’09-’11), Bank Rupture began as Stockton, California teetered on the precipice of bankruptcy. I first traveled to Stockton in 2009 after 60 Minutes dubbed it the epicenter of the foreclosure crisis. Subsequently GQ magazine declared Stockton the worst place to live in America. In early 2012, as bankruptcy loomed, I was compelled to return to Stockton and begin photographing again. 

An All-American city transformed into the largest municipality in American history to declare bankruptcy, Bank Rupture looks at the aftermath of the economic crisis through a city caught in the crush. Inspired by the Dust Bowl photographs of the Great Depression, the work reflects on a landscape and it’s people awash in crime, economic devastation, and hopelessness. The three chapters in my series The Great Recession represent home, industry, and government. Bank Rupture, the companion piece and dénouement to my recession work, reflects on the city and citizens of Stockton as they struggle to survive in the wake of the worst economic crisis of our lifetime. I plan to continue this work as until the entire bankruptcy proceedings unfold.