During the 2016 US Presidential elections Japanese photographer, Fumi Nagasaka, became intrigued by rural and southern USA. She had lived in New York City for a decade but despite travelling the world, had yet to visit the rest of the US. All this changed when her friend, Tanya Rouse, invited her to her hometown of Dora, Alabama. Nagasaka continued to visit Dora over several years, gradually building a photographic archive of her visits. A selection of these photographs are included in her book Dora, Yerkwood, Walker County, Alabama.

Located northwest of the city of Birmingham, Dora is a town of about 2,300 people. Church, college football, and Jack’s —the regional fast-food chain— are popular with the town’s residents and Nagasaka was introduced to each on her visits. Although an outsider, Nagasaka gradually built trust and began to photograph the town’s residents. After documenting Dora High School’s homecoming football game, Nagasaka’s connections grew exponentially. She found herself immersed in the lives of several Walker County residents and earned both their trust and the opportunity to tell their stories.