Nov 4, 2012
Rapid City Muffler Man
Located just outside of Rapid City, South Dakota on the road to Mount Rushmore is this giant muffler man. Holding a pick ax, and with Harley Davidson branding on his shirt and belt, Andrea and I couldn't help but stop and get a look at this cheesy roadside attraction. It was a random thing to come across, but then again, that was kind of the point of the lengthy road trip.
Nov 2, 2012
New Stacks of Vintage Vinyl
After my Grandma passed this summer, we each received care packages that had a bunch of different mementos. When asked, I was all too happy to have her old record player and inherit her collection of campy German records. My vinyl collection up to this point was almost exclusively awful records from thrift stores and garage sales that I simply wanted for their cover art.
My aunt Bev, noticing my interest, offered me her old record player and collection too. The thing was, her collection was actually amazing. While in Calgary on my way back from Vegas, I stopped to load up the Jag with my care package of Grandma's things as well as two crates of records from my aunt. That night back at home, I set up my Grandma's old record player and started digging through the crates. I really didn't have high expectations for what I'd find, but only a few minutes in I was already hooked.
I pulled out original presses of Rolling Stones albums like Sticky Fingers and Let it Bleed. There was Billy Idol, the Police, George Harrison, Pink Floyd, Gensis, Fleetwood Mac, David Bowie, the Traveling Wilburys, Stevie Wonder, John Lennon, Eric Clapton, and even the original release of Michael Jackson's Thriller. I have so many of these albums and artists on my iPod, and grew up listening to a lot of these through my parents. Seeing all of this tangible music was really cool. On top of it all, I was discovering liner notes and artwork that I'd never seen before.
Listening to records is an experience steeped in a nostalgia that I never really got to experience. The crackling audio is actually enhanced by the time you take looking at the artwork, reading the notes, and scanning the covers. It's not the same as a CD, as these giant cardboard panels command more attention and their presentation is more elaborate; multi-folding covers, decorated sleeves, etc.
In addition to this, you actually interact with the record by moving the needle to select the songs you want to hear. After years of nothing but iTunes and CDs, the action of changing sides after 4 or 5 songs and then putting everything back in its sleeve requires you to be a bit more engaged. It's kind of endearing and makes listening to music an activity, instead of a supplement to something else. There's also the appreciation you get from knowing that this is what this music sounded like when it first came out. No digital remastering or alteration, this is how it was. The quality isn't great, the technology is cumbersome, and there's not really a practical reason to listen to records anymore. Maybe that's why I enjoy it so much. I love the history of places and things that have fallen from significance - there's a romance to it all. I look forward to my continued vinyl discoveries in the coming weeks, and hope to share more soon.
My aunt Bev, noticing my interest, offered me her old record player and collection too. The thing was, her collection was actually amazing. While in Calgary on my way back from Vegas, I stopped to load up the Jag with my care package of Grandma's things as well as two crates of records from my aunt. That night back at home, I set up my Grandma's old record player and started digging through the crates. I really didn't have high expectations for what I'd find, but only a few minutes in I was already hooked.
I pulled out original presses of Rolling Stones albums like Sticky Fingers and Let it Bleed. There was Billy Idol, the Police, George Harrison, Pink Floyd, Gensis, Fleetwood Mac, David Bowie, the Traveling Wilburys, Stevie Wonder, John Lennon, Eric Clapton, and even the original release of Michael Jackson's Thriller. I have so many of these albums and artists on my iPod, and grew up listening to a lot of these through my parents. Seeing all of this tangible music was really cool. On top of it all, I was discovering liner notes and artwork that I'd never seen before.
Listening to records is an experience steeped in a nostalgia that I never really got to experience. The crackling audio is actually enhanced by the time you take looking at the artwork, reading the notes, and scanning the covers. It's not the same as a CD, as these giant cardboard panels command more attention and their presentation is more elaborate; multi-folding covers, decorated sleeves, etc.
In addition to this, you actually interact with the record by moving the needle to select the songs you want to hear. After years of nothing but iTunes and CDs, the action of changing sides after 4 or 5 songs and then putting everything back in its sleeve requires you to be a bit more engaged. It's kind of endearing and makes listening to music an activity, instead of a supplement to something else. There's also the appreciation you get from knowing that this is what this music sounded like when it first came out. No digital remastering or alteration, this is how it was. The quality isn't great, the technology is cumbersome, and there's not really a practical reason to listen to records anymore. Maybe that's why I enjoy it so much. I love the history of places and things that have fallen from significance - there's a romance to it all. I look forward to my continued vinyl discoveries in the coming weeks, and hope to share more soon.
Nov 1, 2012
Hycroft China Factory Interior: Part 1
Of all the locations I've photographed for my Around the Hat photo series, the inside of the former Hycroft China Factory is one that really stands out. I photographed the exterior of this Medicine Hat landmark previously, and was teased by what I could vaguely see through some of the windows. What began as Medicine Hat Potteries in 1937 became Hycroft in 1957, and the factory continued manufacturing dishware and sanitary ware (toilets) until closing in 1989. Inside Hycroft today, the history of what went on here is still very apparent.
Boxes of undecorated dishes and cups are stacked everywhere. Slip casts and old molds for toilet bowls and mugs are also plentiful. There are remnants of the former museum displays still around from when the factory became a tourist attraction with the Great Wall of China (literally a wall of Hycroft China) in the 1990s. Clues from the artist's in residence are also still hanging around, although the program has since moved to the new facilities that came with the renovation of Medalta Potteries down the road.
The Hycroft Factory has been closed to the public for some time now, and what remains is a very dense, visual, and rustic space. Unlike the recently closed Brick and Tile plant that I photographed in the summer, Hycroft feels more intimate and personal. The scale of the Brick and Tile plant made it very industrial looking, whereas inside Hycroft you get more a sense of the individual work stations that made the operation happen.
From small details like time cards still in place, calendar pages from the 1980s at work stations, or the handwritten labels stapled on crates, you can still see the human element behind the china that was produced here. I spent more time filtering and playing with textures on these images than on any of the others I've shot for this series, because I wanted them to reflect more of the character that the location exudes when you're standing in the middle of it.
It's easy to make this place look dingy and cold, but that's not the impression I got during my visit. Behind foggy panes of glass, inside musty cardboard boxes, and among the countless silent machines that dominate this abandoned factory, it's clear that there is still an amazing amount of history echoing between these walls. Thankfully, the Friends of Medalta are preserving this space and its contents, however the future uses for the factory remain unclear at this time.
Explore more of this series in PART 2 and PART 3.
Boxes of undecorated dishes and cups are stacked everywhere. Slip casts and old molds for toilet bowls and mugs are also plentiful. There are remnants of the former museum displays still around from when the factory became a tourist attraction with the Great Wall of China (literally a wall of Hycroft China) in the 1990s. Clues from the artist's in residence are also still hanging around, although the program has since moved to the new facilities that came with the renovation of Medalta Potteries down the road.
The Hycroft Factory has been closed to the public for some time now, and what remains is a very dense, visual, and rustic space. Unlike the recently closed Brick and Tile plant that I photographed in the summer, Hycroft feels more intimate and personal. The scale of the Brick and Tile plant made it very industrial looking, whereas inside Hycroft you get more a sense of the individual work stations that made the operation happen.
From small details like time cards still in place, calendar pages from the 1980s at work stations, or the handwritten labels stapled on crates, you can still see the human element behind the china that was produced here. I spent more time filtering and playing with textures on these images than on any of the others I've shot for this series, because I wanted them to reflect more of the character that the location exudes when you're standing in the middle of it.
It's easy to make this place look dingy and cold, but that's not the impression I got during my visit. Behind foggy panes of glass, inside musty cardboard boxes, and among the countless silent machines that dominate this abandoned factory, it's clear that there is still an amazing amount of history echoing between these walls. Thankfully, the Friends of Medalta are preserving this space and its contents, however the future uses for the factory remain unclear at this time. Explore more of this series in PART 2 and PART 3.
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