'British photographer Chris Bethell recently completed an epic, six-week road trip across the United States. Accompanied by his partner Bekky, Bethell’s mission was a personal one: something of a pilgrimage almost. He wanted to find out more about his American mother’s roots; to truly understand the country her father – his grandfather – had come from; a country that he’d never previously visited.' Amuse/VICE
Boston
'Every night we spent in Boston was spent in a different jazz bar. I had believed my Grandfather to be a successful travelling jazz musician up until I was twenty-five, so I wanted to dive into the culture and figure out why jazz had been so important to the fantasy of my grandfather. Unfortunately this was a pretty hard answer to find – I’m still not sure where I got that idea from.'
New York City
'I can’t remember much about the man in this image. I took this quickly from the hip as he passed me and Bekky on the Brooklyn Bridge. His expression seems sorrowful – reflecting the words on his t-shirt.'
New York State, Pennsylvania and Ohio
'I really like this for its composition – the two layers involved. In the foreground, and out of focus, is someone branded in Adidas clutching a Starbucks cup and a pack of Marlboros. In the background is a woman peeking under the hood of a car.'
Minnesota
This is one of those pictures that really resonates with my America – the America, I imagined, of my grandfather. Similar to the biker photograph previously, the colours of the sky and the significance of the road scream out at me. It’s such a quiet image, and I love imagining my grandfather to be in the driver’s seat.
South Dakota
'I found these two up on a viewing platform. I loved their matching binoculars and had to take a portrait of them.'
Wyoming
'I photographed this cat at a service station in the middle of nowhere. The light pierced through the cars windows to illuminate its fur. Its eyes were intense as it stared back at me.'
Las Vegas
'This bronzed woman sat for one of the many street artists found at Fremont Street.Her artist was constructing a clay sculpture of her head.'