Battle of the Boon(e)villes (2007)

Boonville, Missouri vs. Booneville, Mississippi (2007)

FYI: There are six Boonvilles and seven Boonevilles.

Many people ask me "why Boonville?" And others ask me "why not Booneville?" There are many reasons why I chose the name Boonville and many reasons why I chose not to explore the ones spelled with an E...here are five. #1) Boonville, New York was the initial inspiration for the series and my first introduction to the Boonvilles. #2) Boonville, in my mind anyway, sounds like the quintessential small town. #3) Boonville is reminiscent of the Boonies or the Boondocks (meaning hinterland or backwoods). #4) The geographical locations of the six Boonvilles (MO, NC, NY, IN, TX, CA) is more diverse then the Boonevilles and #5) the population range between the six is almost perfect: Missouri 8,000+, Indiana 6,000+, New York 2,100+, N. Carolina 1,100+, California 600-800, and Texas is extinct.

Although I do have a very specific interest in each of these Boonvilles...this project is not literally about the six Boonvilles. I am using these towns, their common name, geographical locations and different sizes to create a visual representation of "small-town America". My end vision for the project is to juxtapose the final images from all six towns, in turn creating a mythical or fictional "Boonville."