Matt Black's "Geography of Poverty"
Homeless camp in Stockton, California, 2016, a city with a population of 291,707, of whom 25.8% live below the poverty level.
For the last four years Matt Black has traveled the country, driving more than 100,000 miles, to photograph communities living in poverty. His project, "The Geography of Poverty," shows Americans in 46 states whose lives exist outside of the American Dream.
At Work
Matt Black saw firsthand the economic disparity living in Central California, between Hollywood and Silicon Valley.
"It's the great exception to the rest of the state," Black told CBS News' Michelle Miller. "I felt like that was a very clear thing for me to focus on, to [tell] these stories about these communities that are so often overlooked."
Allensworth, California
Fence post in Allensworth, California, 2014. Allensworth has a population of 471, and 54% live below the poverty level.
Matt Black has made four cross-country trips, visiting 46 states, to document communities of "concentrated poverty," in areas urban and rural, black and white. "This is all races, all ethnicities, all cultures, all histories, all geographies throughout," he said. "Together, there's a common theme of 'We've been left out. We're shut out of this idea of what America is.'"
Modesto, California
Corner store in Modesto, California, 2014. Modesto has a population of 201,165, and 20.8% live below the poverty level.
Michelle Miller asked, "So, how do you capture all of that in a picture?"
"Well, I'm trying to focus very much on the lived experience of people, not poverty in an objectified sense," Black replied. "So, it can be very small things. It could be, you know, the way a crack in the sidewalk appears. It's about creating this intimate kind of connection with that, to the looker."
Fresno, California
Homeless camp, in Fresno, California, 2014. Fresno has a population of 494,665, and 24.8% live below the poverty level.
Corcoran, California
Burning tires in Corcoran, California, 2014. Corcoran has a population of 24,813, and 28% live below the poverty level.
Rome, Mississippi
A woman in her kitchen in Rome, Sunflower County, Mississippi, 2017. Sunflower County has a population of 29,450, and 35.5% live below the poverty level.
Flint, Michigan
Snow falls outside a shuttered K-Mart in Flint, Michigan, 2016. Flint has a population of 102,434, and 41.5% live below the poverty level.
Flint, Michigan
Searching for scrap metal in Flint, Michigan, 2015.
Columbus, North Dakota
Downtown Columbus, North Dakota, 2017. Columbus has a population of 133, and 36.5% live below the poverty level.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2016. Philadelphia has a population of 1,526,006, and 26.7% live below the poverty level.
Fort Gaines, Georgia
Downtown Fort Gaines, Georgia, 2017. Fort Gaines has a population of 1,107, and 54.5% live below the poverty level.
Tetuán Uno, Puerto Rico
An ill man at home in Tetuán Uno, Utuado Municipality, Puerto Rico, 2017. Utuado has a population of 33,149, and 52.2% live below the poverty level.
Little Eagle, South Dakota
Little Eagle, South Dakota, 2015. Little Eagle has a population of 319, and 51.4% live below the poverty level.
Days Crossroads, Georgia
Laundry in Days Crossroads, Clay County, Georgia, 2017. Clay County has a population of 3,183, and 42.2% live below the poverty level.
For more of Matt Black's photographs visit his website, mattblack.com, and follow him on Instagram.
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By CBSNews.com senior producer David Morgan