Builder Levy: Appalachia USA

Appalachia USA is a unique documentary project by the New York-based photographer Builder Levy (b. 1942) that explores life and labor in coal mining communities in Kentucky and West Virginia during the span of 40 years.

Levy’s arresting black-and-white photographs connect us to the very heart of coal mining. He traces the indelible legacy of the coal industry on the lives and landscapes that define the region from scenes shot deep underground where miners toil at their difficult and often perilous work to the tops of mountains where explosives and heavy machinery extract coal and irrevocably alter the shape of the land.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.