Ferry Ride at Sunset

Based in New York City, photographer Elizabeth Holmes examines themes of memory, belonging, and the emotional resonance of place. Her work is rooted in careful observation and long-term documentation, often focusing on the quiet visual markers that define a community’s identity.

Since 2017, she has photographed independent mom-and-pop storefronts throughout New York City, London, and small-town America. Working methodically street by street, she returns to neighborhoods over time, capturing the signage, façades, and architectural details that reflect their distinct character. The project serves as an ongoing record of independent businesses and the cultural fabric they sustain—spaces that are increasingly vulnerable to disappearance. Her practice has taken her the full length of historic U.S. Route 66. The resulting series explores the mythology of America’s most iconic highway through its vernacular signage, roadside architecture, and the enduring visual language of the American road trip. She is currently developing a book based on her long-term photographic documentation of New York City’s disappearing independent storefronts.