Brevard, NC -- (SBWire) -- 09/03/2014 --From “I Pad, I Pod, I Pray” to “A Sunrise Is God’s Way Of Telling The World To Lighten Up” – the hundreds of thousands of hand-lettered signs gracing churches across the country have become an under-appreciated yet vital component of American culture. While the rise in accessibility and lowering costs of digital technology is rapidly replacing these analogue marvels, two North Carolina photographers are on a bold mission to preserve their unlikely beauty and influence through a new book.
‘Soul Signs (of the South)’ encapsulates all that is great about Americana, by compiling images of the weird and wonderful hand-lettered church signs that still exist across seven States.
Synopsis:
Strewn along the interstates, blue highways, and back roads—all across the South, there are Churches. They come in all shapes, sizes and denominations. But, they have one thing in common. SIGNS. Hand-lettered signs, planted by the roadside, either quoting Scripture, or containing cleverly worded sayings, all designed to be attention grabbing, thought provoking and memorable. All for the purpose of providing a mini-sermon to everyone who passes by. Sadly, the authors discovered in preparing this book that these familiar parts of Americana are quickly fading from view. These “hand-lettered” signs are being replaced by “electronic digital” signs, some of which are pictured here. These fancy new signs deliver the same messages, but will never deliver the same soul.
“These mini-sermons have become a vital part of life for both Christians and the secular public, but in a few years there won’t be any left as digital signage creeps in at an alarming pace,” explains Jones. “We wanted to capture and preserve this wonderful part of Americana while we still could. Our book transcends any single genre; to some it can be a unique coffee table book, to some family heirloom and to others a living legacy of our nation’s roadside moments of reflection.”
Continuing, “While we can’t hold onto the past, we can hold onto this book and turn its pages whenever we want a quiet moment of reflection or opportunity to revel in the past we once knew. But it is also a vital resource for tomorrow’s generation. Some will use the signs’ messages to transform their own lives and some will laugh at them, but either way they will be afforded a valuable opportunity to see Americana and culture as it once was. That makes the book a wonderful gift and resource for all; no matter if you’re a person of faith or a secularist who loves your country.”
‘Soul Signs (of the South)’, from Dog Ear Publishing, is available now: http://bit.ly/1Cm77WA
About Bucky Jones
Bucky Jones and Eloise Veal are photographers and writers who live in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains just outside the quaint, small town of Brevard, NC. They are always on the lookout for unique ideas to present to the world in picture book form. Their ideas require a lot of travel, which they both enjoy very much.
With so much of the world changing at “techno” speed, they have decided to devote their work to, and to preserve, as much “Americana” as possible. This book, as well as others, already in the planning stages, is about holding on to the things that are good about America, whether religious, spiritual or secular.
