Elliot Ross (b. 1990, Taipei, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese American photographer whose practice is deeply connected to the American West—a region that serves as a text to explore how landscapes, both natural and constructed, shape communities and cultures. His ongoing work examines the impact of settler colonialism, the urban-rural disconnect, and Indigenous self-determination. Ross is a National Geographic Explorer, a Magnum Foundation grantee, and a fellow at The Center for Contemporary Documentation. He has published several books including American Backyard and has produced cover stories for National Geographic and TIME. His work regularly appears in The Atlantic, The New Yorker and The New York Times. In the summer of 2026, A Question of Balance will be published as a monograph by KGP Monolith.
As the American Southwest endures the worst drought in 1,200 years, a story told through two communities illustrates the deep inequities in water access, and a supply divided along racial lines.
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