Gasoline

The gas station is one of the most iconic of 20th century buildings. Recognised across the world, it is arguably most established on American soil where the notion of the road trip on a full tank of gas is culturally ingrained.

This digital edition of Gasoline presents 35 archive press images of gas stations taken between 1944 and 1995, each marked with its own set of editorial instructions in grease pen. They have been collected by writer David Campany, purchased from the photography archives of several American newspapers. The images can be flipped at the tap of a finger to reveal a detailed reverse, giving further clues to the role of the image in the press of its day.

Individually the images are single moments in time; collectively they show a growing consciousness about cars, the oil trade and global concern about pollution.

David Campany is a London based writer, curator, and artist. He writes about documentary, photojournalism, art, cinema, fashion, archives, and architecture. He has published essays on many artists and photographers, including Paul Graham, Chris Killip, Edgar Martins and John Stezaker.