Sunday 2 September 2012

Mojave Chamber of Commerce

Hans Durrer @ Emelle Sonh

In the summer of 2007, I spent three months in the Southern Californian desert. One of the places that especially fascinated me was Mojave. What I remember is its airplane cemetery, the Motel 6, main street, a young woman at Burger King who had no idea how to go about her job, a shopping place, the sun setting in the desert and drinking coffee with Emelle. I do however have no recollection at all of the place where the above photo was taken.

It seems strange to me that there should be a Mojave Chamber of Commerce – didn't the whole place, apart from the airport cemetery, basically consist of some houses along a street? On the other hand, why should that not suffice for a chamber of commerce? Whatever, there actually is a Mojave Chamber of Commerce (or at least a building that carries its name), the photograph not only proves that, the photograph also proves that I myself was actually there.

PS: In a portrait on Arte, Jonathan Franzen said about the unspoiled Mojave desert: Nobody knows what to do with this vast nature and this is the reason why it is unspoiled.

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