Reframing West Virginia: The Photography of Okey DeRaimo
Document Type
Panel Presentation
Keywords
Appalachia, poetry, photography
Biography
Alannah Stone is a senior at Marshall University studying creative writing and literary studies.
Major
Literary Studies & Creative Writing
Advisor for this project
Dr. Britton C. Lumpkin
Abstract
“Reframing West Virginia” is a poetry project focused on envisioning authentic and positive West Virginian narratives. Based off of the photography of Okey DeRaimo, the collection of poems focuses on the day-to-day life of a coal community in the 1950s and 60s, aiming to break down negative stereotypes surrounding West Virginia and coal counties. With the photographs serving as historical grounding, the poetry explores the narratives and voices of the everyday West Virginian living during this time, highlighting the simplicity of the human experience that everyone can recognize. Through the use of DeRaimo’s photography, a conversation has been created between two people aiming to accurately portray their state through two different forms of media.
Reframing West Virginia: The Photography of Okey DeRaimo
“Reframing West Virginia” is a poetry project focused on envisioning authentic and positive West Virginian narratives. Based off of the photography of Okey DeRaimo, the collection of poems focuses on the day-to-day life of a coal community in the 1950s and 60s, aiming to break down negative stereotypes surrounding West Virginia and coal counties. With the photographs serving as historical grounding, the poetry explores the narratives and voices of the everyday West Virginian living during this time, highlighting the simplicity of the human experience that everyone can recognize. Through the use of DeRaimo’s photography, a conversation has been created between two people aiming to accurately portray their state through two different forms of media.
