Art opening tonight at the UW Math and Science Teaching Center

Badlands at Robber's Gulch, in the Red Desert north of Baggs, Wyoming.

I'm participating in an art show that opens tonight (November 5) at the Math and Science Teaching Center on the University of Wyoming campus.  The opening is from 6:30-8:30, so if you're in town, stop by and have a look.  There will be lots of art there from local artists. The show is on the 4th floor of Wyoming Hall.

Honeycomb Buttes, Red Desert, Wyoming.

Dawn, Pine Bluffs, Wyoming.

Abandoned Places

Abandoned truck stop, Wyoming-Nebraska state line at Pine Bluffs.

(Click images to view larger)

I've been trying to figure out what is appealing to me about shooting photographs of abandoned places.  Trying to make artful photographs is daunting these days because there are so many people producing high quality work of every subject under the sun, that it's impossible not to feel that you're just contributing to cliches, or reproducing what others have already done.  Abandoned farms, old industrial sites, rusting cars and trucks, farm equipment, windmills:  they've been worked over by photographers and painters.  But when I'm out exploring I photograph them anyway.  

What's the meaning of these images?  What am I trying to say with them?  I'm not sure yet, but here are a few ideas.  I'm not entirely satisfied with these explanations though.  What do you think?

First, I enjoy exploring abandoned sites much as I enjoy exploring canyons, other countries, Wyoming basins, sagebrush, shorelines, or any place where I don't know what I'll find.  There's  the anticipation of discovering something unexpected and beautiful or even interesting but ugly.    

Secondly, there are often arrangements of objects that are accidentally beautiful or emotional in places that people have left behind.  On a recent trip I explored an old trailer near an abandoned truck stop, and found a package of family photographs in the dust and debris.  Were they left on purpose?  By mistake?  An electric bill was addressed to a name that matched annotation on the backs of some of the photos, but when I found the person on facebook and sent them a message offering to mail them the old photos (I left them in the trailer but could retrieve them), I never heard back.  Was their time in that trailer something that they wanted to leave behind?  Or maybe they just don't look at the internet? 

I wonder if the children whose abandoned rooms contain old books and toys drive past these places as adults, and if they stop to have a look.

Truck trailers, abandoned truck stop.

A diner, abandoned truck stop, Pine Bluffs, Wyoming.

An adding machine.

Paper towel holder, abandoned diner.

The following are found photographs from an old trailer.  I encourage you to click on these and look at them at full size. 

      

Pine Bluffs, Wyoming

Sunrise, Pine Bluffs, Wyoming.

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Note (5 May 2015):  See comment below this post for some nice information on some of the pictures from a former resident.  It's fun to get information like this to add to the story.

According to Wikipedia, Pine Bluffs was originally known as Rock Ranch and consisted of a tent with a chimney.  From there it grew into an important railroad town along the Texas Trail and served as a loading point for cattle that had been driven north to meet the Union Pacific.  Today the population is just over 1100 people and agriculture dominates the economy.  There are some historic photos of Pine Bluffs at this site.  The Old Lincoln Highway, which is now replaced by I-80 passes through town.

As I said in my previous post, Ed Sherline and I drove to Pine Bluffs before Christmas to be there for sunrise on a cold windy morning.  I spent most of my time exploring the gas pump collection (previous post) at Pete's Service, while Ed explored along the main street.  One of my favorite images of the town was the first one I took there when I got out of the car--an old stone garage decorated for Christmas.

On the way home, we stopped in Cheyenne and had chicken fried steak, pancakes, and bacon for breakfast.  That's the real reason we get up early to photograph small town Wyoming.

Old Pine Bluffs.

Metal garage, Pine Bluffs.

Grain elevator, Pine Bluffs.

Retired advertisement, Pine Bluffs.

Stone garage, Pine Bluffs.

Window curtains, Pine Bluffs.

Pete's Service, Pine Bluffs, Wyoming

Gas pump, Pete's Service, Pine Bluffs, Wyoming. 

(Click images to view larger) 

I've driven through Pine Bluffs, Wyoming before, but never stopped there, and it seemed like a good destination for a photo trip, so I woke up this morning at 4:30 a.m. after worrying about waking up at 4:30 a.m. for most of the night.  I picked up Ed Sherline, a photographer friend, at 5 a.m. for the 100 mile drive east.  Ed had been up late picking up relatives at the Denver airport and slept poorly too, so our coffee was gone before we passed Vedauwoo, fifteen minutes out of town.  

Pine Bluffs is a small town right on the Wyoming-Nebraska border.  I'll write a separate post on the town later, but a quick google search reveals only five "Frequently Asked Questions" about Pine Bluffs:

                        1.  What are the government office hours?

                        2.  What is the recycling pickup schedule?

                        3.  At what point is a snow emergency declared?

                        4.  Do I need a permit for a recreational fire?

                        5.  Who do I contact to rent a park shelter?

There's a giant billboard on the edge of town that implores passersby on I-80 to "Stop Obama Socialism (SOS)", though a website that google revealed lambasts the "liberal" town council for not allowing firearms to be carried around in town.  

I spent most of my time at Pete's Service (est. 1924), a former gas station near the old part of town that doesn't appear to pump gas any longer, but that hosts a vast collection of old pumps, presumably collected along the old Lincoln Highway before I-80 came through.  I don't know anything about Pete or why he collects pumps, but if anyone does, fill in info in the comments.  

Pete's Service along Highway 30.

A subset of the gas pump collection.

Paint detail from gas pump.

Phillips/Skelly paint detail.

Gas pump.

More gas pumps.

Old paint.

Glass must be full.