Down East was kind enough to send me a copy of their new book Ruin: Photographs of a Vanishing America with photographs by architectural photographer Brian Vanden Brink. The book is a documentation of some of the forgotten buildings that are strewn across America. Brian Vanden Brink’s architectural eye brings out the beauty in these forgotten places and singles them out as artifacts and specimens that must be preserved (at least on film) for future generations.
Looking at the 120 photos in this collection (50 in color and 70 in black and white) make me wonder about the history of some of these buildings and what circumstances must have played out to make the owners abandon these structures. Were these buildings left behind when somebody passed away? Or were they abandoned because of financial or environmental circumstances? The questions remain and Brian cannot answer them all, but he can capture them in such a way that makes you appreciate their beauty despite being called eyesores in their community.
As a plus, Brian includes several photos that he took for the Historic American Engineering Record of buildings and structures that the government (Federal and State) are actively working on to either demolish, rehabilitate, or add on to. In some cases, these government sites have all but been abandoned and left to rot and in a sense, they take on a life of their own as shown in Brian’s photos.
For somebody like me who is obsessed with abandoned structures and places, this book certainly filled me with a sense of wanderlust. I’d love to visit the towns that these abandoned buildings and structures are located and see them all for myself. I probably won’t make it to most of them in this book, but I’m thankful that Brian has included the general locations just in case I do intend to make some sort of trip in the future.
I thoroughly enjoyed this series of photos from Down East and Brian Vanden Brink and I highly encourage you to get your own copy of this book too so you can enjoy parts of America in a new way. Even better is that Amazon.com sells Ruin: Photographs of a Vanishing America for just over $40, which is a good amount off of the suggested retail price of $65.
Palladium Boots has unveiled a short video about exploring the urban ruins of New York City (and the surrounding boroughs). In the video, they hit up big spots like the Freedom Tunnel, the Glenwood Power Plant, and the Red Hook Grain Terminal. I’ve been to all 3 and I’ve shown photos here of the places before, but if you want a better view of them without actually having to go there, then you’ll want to watch the video because it’s sorta interesting.
I’m a big fan of Miru Kim’s photos because she always seems to find really fascinating subject matter and locations in her urban exploration expeditions. If you recall, Miru Kim is the photographer who goes into abandoned structures and places and then photographs herself nude in them.
In this TED Talks video from the 2008 EG Conference, Miru Kim talked about her work, where her idea came from, and what she is trying to convey by posing nude in these abandoned man-made structures. It’s really interesting to see where her work has brought her and I very much envy her travels around the world.
I was actually at the old Renwick Smallpox Hospital on Roosevelt Island this past weekend and snapped a couple of shots of the facade of the building. The structure looks significantly more stable than the last time I encountered it, and it now has construction material and supports all throughout the building. The former smallpox hospital is currently going through a stabilization phase that will ensure its place in the National and State Archives of historical places and as a landmark in New York City.
Another thing that surprised me this past weekend as I was visiting the structure was that it is now incredibly easy to just walk straight in and see the place up close. The fence that leads into the lower portion of Roosevelt Island was open and several people were just in the construction zone admiring the aging structure. I’m not sure if it was a mistake or not, but it certainly was relatively easy to get close to.
Navigation sucks, but as I’ve said before, you can get around pushing “Next” all the time by using the repagination add-on for Firefox. That way, you can enjoy all of his photos in one long page.
