BEFORE AFTER

by Marc Choi


Are y’all ready to see your fixer upper? “Before After” examines Waco, Texas as a place that exists in the American collective consciousness. After the 1993 standoff between federal agents and a religious cult known as the Branch Davidians, Waco became synonymous with zealous cult activity; the cult’s self-proclaimed messiah, David Koresh; and the rise of the modern American militia. Two decades later, Waco was reborn as the site of the popular HGTV home renovation show, “Fixer Upper.” Using archival images and documents from the FBI, alongside imagery from episodes of “Fixer Upper,” “Before After” examines Waco as a site of memory, renovation, and transformation as experienced through the national gaze.

By Marc Choi

Published by Track and Field

First Edition, 2022

32 pages, Digital Color, 9 x 12 inches