The picture I selected for this assignment is Ryan McGinley's Jack (Blue Mass) 2009 - pictured below.
There was a mysterious body of water that the whole town knew about - the Blue Mass. It was located in a cave, not too far from town. The travel time was not too long, but my was the commute a confusing one. This was not the type of destination that was on any map or any GPS, that would be too easy. To get to the Blue Mass, you had to actually leave the small town and drive north. You spend some time driving north to get on to the nearest highway, but before you know it, you're on a narrow dirt road with too many twists and turns – all a part of the journey. You're on this road, and roads like it, for a little bit before you have to just park and walk the rest. Most people go during the day, since it will be dark in the cave anyway. But, they also go during the day because this is not the kind of trip you would want to take during the night; rumor has it, several people have gone missing trying to get to the Blue Mass. The entrance to the cave is not the most inviting; there are even man-made signs advising you to turn around and go home. To the truest of explorers, though, these signs are no threat. After about half a mile of navigating through the untamed, seemingly undisturbed environment, you finally reach said entrance.
One day, during a typical Monday afternoon, a few kids from town decided to take this trip. Sammy, a skinny, 18 year old girl with extremely long blonde hair was the driver for that day's expedition. The second group member was Tony, her boyfriend of 2 years. He had dirty blonde hair and was only 17. Last, there was Vincent. Vincent was Sammy's younger cousin; he was only 11 and followed the couple wherever he could. He was short for his age, and did not really have any friends his own age.
After doing all the driving and wondering, they finally arrived at the cave. After reading the signs, Vincent and Tony expressed worry and wanted to back out. Sammy would not let them; she pressured the two to follow her in. The further the three walked, the darker the inside of the cave got and the deeper the water too. When the water was too deep to continue without getting all the way in, Sammy told Vincent to strip naked and get in the water. He hesitated, but he knew Sammy would just keep asking and pushing had he refused. So he did it; he took off all his clothes and got in slowly as Sammy took out her camera.
This picture was the only thing left of the three of them after that day.
