Dr. Bruce West wonders what direction his life would have taken if he hadn’t turned right onto Business Route 61 one day in 1994. West, a professor of art and design, was on a road trip through rural Mississippi during his sabbatical and wanted to capture the essence of life in the south.

That small detour served as an inspiration for an 18-year photography project and book, called “The True Gospel Preached Here.”

The individuals he met — the Reverend and Margaret Dennis — became the subject of his art. These images tell a story of race, age, religion and class.

For approximately 20 years prior to this project, West had been exhibiting black and white landscape work and housing collections in museums from the Midwest to Italy. From the majesty of a landscape to portraying the evangelical Dennises, his photography exposes longing for the divine.

Read more about West’s project in Mind’s Eye.