Showing posts with label ruins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ruins. Show all posts
3.18.2009
11.23.2008
abandoned adventure in arbuckle
while on our location scout marcia and i made a stop to photograph this old abandoned home right off the main road in arbuckle, ca. it was a beautiful structure full of windows and light. the holes in the ceiling made it possible for me to take some great interiors. check 'em out:
the exterior of the house.
it looks like it could just crumble into itself at any moment.
i fell in love with this room. the large number of south facing windows provided plenty of light. but you can see that the most interesting light is coming from the gaps in the ceiling. if you look close enough you can really see the texture of the debris on the floor. but my favorite part of this photo is the movement of the windows; how they've become slanted and now descend and ascend in what feels like carefully calculated choreography.
i had to climb on a shaky banister to get this shot. but what a lovely old stove. for some reason it makes me think of bonnie and clyde...
another windows shot. the shape of these windows and the quality of light of the scene beyond makes it feel like each window is its own little polaroid, wouldn't you say?
the exterior of the house.
it looks like it could just crumble into itself at any moment.
i fell in love with this room. the large number of south facing windows provided plenty of light. but you can see that the most interesting light is coming from the gaps in the ceiling. if you look close enough you can really see the texture of the debris on the floor. but my favorite part of this photo is the movement of the windows; how they've become slanted and now descend and ascend in what feels like carefully calculated choreography.
i had to climb on a shaky banister to get this shot. but what a lovely old stove. for some reason it makes me think of bonnie and clyde...
another windows shot. the shape of these windows and the quality of light of the scene beyond makes it feel like each window is its own little polaroid, wouldn't you say?
8.13.2008
picher, ok
my cross country journey took me from the west end of the oklahoma panhandle all the way across to the northeast corner of the state. just as i was about to cross the oklahoma-kansas border i passed through a little town called picher.
something felt off as i entered the town. and as i got further in i noticed a whole grouping of damaged homes to my right, with a no-trespassing sign loftily staked at the main road entrance. i, of course, indulged my curiosity and ventured into the neighborhood. i anticipated finding a couple arsoned homes or something of the like. but what i discovered was so much more. a whole neighborhood of of picher had been completely desecrated. homes with roofs torn off and on the ground beside them, furniture strewn about the streets, entire trees ripped from the earth now lay with their roots facing the sky. it soon sank in that this town suffered a severe natural disaster. later research confirmed this town was hit by a tornado in may 2008.
the following polaroids were all i could capture of the left-behind town. the whole experience was simultaneously unsettling, beautiful and sad.
a tree lies, its roots exposed.
'dear jon's archery supply'
one of the less-damaged homes sits amongst storm trash and debris.
this home reads 'SEATO'. im not exactly sure what it means.
the sentiment to the left reads 'what's left of it'.
an abandoned home sits still while the wind moves the curtains in and out of the shattered windows.
it was so bright out that i wasn't able to totally capture this street sign.
it reads '7th street' above a pile of debris that includes a home, a tree and some left behind toys.
driving through this town was incredibly intense. what was so crazy about it was that driving in, through and out took less than an hour. this town was so small yet i can't imagine the magnitude of effect this tornado had on the people who lived there. as i drove out of the town i noticed all the store fronts and businesses were closed and abandoned. how can you run businesses in a town if no one lives there anymore?
and picher is just one example of small town america being fought and defeated by natural disaster. i cant help wonder where all these people went and what is going to happen to this little town.
** further research indicates that the town of picher was already undergoing abandonment after many residents left due to poor air and water conditions. this was the result of years of underground lead and zinc mining. **
something felt off as i entered the town. and as i got further in i noticed a whole grouping of damaged homes to my right, with a no-trespassing sign loftily staked at the main road entrance. i, of course, indulged my curiosity and ventured into the neighborhood. i anticipated finding a couple arsoned homes or something of the like. but what i discovered was so much more. a whole neighborhood of of picher had been completely desecrated. homes with roofs torn off and on the ground beside them, furniture strewn about the streets, entire trees ripped from the earth now lay with their roots facing the sky. it soon sank in that this town suffered a severe natural disaster. later research confirmed this town was hit by a tornado in may 2008.
the following polaroids were all i could capture of the left-behind town. the whole experience was simultaneously unsettling, beautiful and sad.
a tree lies, its roots exposed.
'dear jon's archery supply'
one of the less-damaged homes sits amongst storm trash and debris.
this home reads 'SEATO'. im not exactly sure what it means.
the sentiment to the left reads 'what's left of it'.
an abandoned home sits still while the wind moves the curtains in and out of the shattered windows.
it was so bright out that i wasn't able to totally capture this street sign.
it reads '7th street' above a pile of debris that includes a home, a tree and some left behind toys.
driving through this town was incredibly intense. what was so crazy about it was that driving in, through and out took less than an hour. this town was so small yet i can't imagine the magnitude of effect this tornado had on the people who lived there. as i drove out of the town i noticed all the store fronts and businesses were closed and abandoned. how can you run businesses in a town if no one lives there anymore?
and picher is just one example of small town america being fought and defeated by natural disaster. i cant help wonder where all these people went and what is going to happen to this little town.
** further research indicates that the town of picher was already undergoing abandonment after many residents left due to poor air and water conditions. this was the result of years of underground lead and zinc mining. **
8.11.2008
on the road to tulsa
the abandoned chelsea motel off the old route 66.
she's a child. not a choice!
pro-life propaganda on a rural route road.
i wasn't able to really capture the best part of this sign which is the totally bizarre 'child' represented.
oklahoma corn. i saw a lot of this on my drive.
as high as an elephant's eye.
west to east
my trip home from alamosa took me through, across and over nine different states in only four days. colorado to new mexico to oklahoma to kansas to missouri to illinois to kentucky to tennessee to georgia.
it was a wonderful drive; a fantastic adventure. i took many polaroids along the way and over the next couple of days will post the images and stories of my journeys. . .
i found this old abandoned farmhouse off of route 412 in oklahoma.
as always i am drawn to window frames.
this is my favorite. interiors and exteriors co-exist in abandoned bliss.
it was a wonderful drive; a fantastic adventure. i took many polaroids along the way and over the next couple of days will post the images and stories of my journeys. . .
i found this old abandoned farmhouse off of route 412 in oklahoma.
as always i am drawn to window frames.
this is my favorite. interiors and exteriors co-exist in abandoned bliss.
8.06.2008
devil's playground part II
before i lost my camera to the wild rio grande i got some digital documentation of devil's playground. i love polaroids, naturally, but the digitals do a really great job of capturing the whole space. the following are some highlight shots of the railroad ruins.
8.01.2008
devil's playground part I
today i left alamosa. it was surprisingly painless and harmonious; the time came to leave. so i left.
before i skipped town i made a trip to devil's playground, a sort-of ghost town where many left behind railway cars and shacks live. i've posted about this place once before.
anyway, here are more polaroids of the joint. i am so in love with this space. i hope it remains for years to come (mostly cause i'd love to shoot a movie there.)
before i skipped town i made a trip to devil's playground, a sort-of ghost town where many left behind railway cars and shacks live. i've posted about this place once before.
anyway, here are more polaroids of the joint. i am so in love with this space. i hope it remains for years to come (mostly cause i'd love to shoot a movie there.)
7.17.2008
frontier house
old abandoned farm house near mosca, colorado. a collection of photos of this same house can be found on the slv dweller.
7.08.2008
southside sunset
a post-fire home south of the tracks.
some abandoned railway cars in the pseudo railroad ghost town at old airport road and ninth street.
6.28.2008
chama, colorado
mandi, rachel and i spent an afternoon in san luis, colorado, exploring the town and eating some delicious enchiladas. we then ventured to the surrounding smaller towns, rode our bikes around and took some sweet photos. we scored big time in chama, colorado.there were many left behind buildings and vehicles. below are a couple of polaroids from that adventure:
an old school bus left behind in a field in chama. i had a rough time framing this shot as i had to dodge cacti and fire ants swarming around my feet.
the chama post office. i love how small town post offices are always little one room trailers. the sky was particularly foreboding that day, compelling me to capture the mood.
an old school bus left behind in a field in chama. i had a rough time framing this shot as i had to dodge cacti and fire ants swarming around my feet.
the chama post office. i love how small town post offices are always little one room trailers. the sky was particularly foreboding that day, compelling me to capture the mood.
6.27.2008
south river road
life has been such an amazing roller coaster this past week - so much has changed, evolved, grown and exploded. over the next couple of days i will try to update you, the world, on all this excitement. but let us start with the incredible visit i just had with two beautiful people, mandi & rachel...
mandi and rachel came to colorado from california for a five day extravaganza of adventure and fun. we started the trip with a journey to the garden of the gods in colorado springs. it's a pretty beautiful place despite the ultra-tourist take over. the next day we went on a glorious bike ride down south river road here in alamosa. the sky was ominous the whole time, threatening storms and downpour. we made it home safe but not without stopping to take a number of amazing photos. here are the polaroids from that adventure:
mandi and rachel take a break from biking against the wind. i love this shot. i feel that it totally captures the essence of our day. cloudy, exhausting yet undeniably satisfying.
we hopped the fence for this bad ass truck. something about the front end of abandoned vehicles really gets me jazzed. it's like the truck has a face, wearing a sad, left behind expression.
and the truck again with the mesa and cloudy sky behind it.
that afternoon we also ran into three musicians at milagros coffeehouse who were just beginning their summer 2008 four corners tour. these incredibly talented folks joined us for an evening bonfire and crashed at my pad. check out these websites and see when they'll be strolling through your town: cahalen david morrison & sven hooson.
mandi and rachel came to colorado from california for a five day extravaganza of adventure and fun. we started the trip with a journey to the garden of the gods in colorado springs. it's a pretty beautiful place despite the ultra-tourist take over. the next day we went on a glorious bike ride down south river road here in alamosa. the sky was ominous the whole time, threatening storms and downpour. we made it home safe but not without stopping to take a number of amazing photos. here are the polaroids from that adventure:
mandi and rachel take a break from biking against the wind. i love this shot. i feel that it totally captures the essence of our day. cloudy, exhausting yet undeniably satisfying.
we hopped the fence for this bad ass truck. something about the front end of abandoned vehicles really gets me jazzed. it's like the truck has a face, wearing a sad, left behind expression.
and the truck again with the mesa and cloudy sky behind it.
that afternoon we also ran into three musicians at milagros coffeehouse who were just beginning their summer 2008 four corners tour. these incredibly talented folks joined us for an evening bonfire and crashed at my pad. check out these websites and see when they'll be strolling through your town: cahalen david morrison & sven hooson.
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