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ctfchallenge | all galleries >> Challenge 53 - Architecture - Beyond the Ordinary >> Challenge 53 - Exhibition > Collapsing House
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22-FEB-2004 Lonnit Rysher

Collapsing House

Catskill Mountains, NY

We recently visited the Catskill mountains. Everywhere we went were scenes like this. Even houses that were still occupied were collapsing. It was so sad. But then we drove by the old Concord Hotel and I was devastated. The last time I'd seen it, it was a very nice place. I was there as a contestant in the Miss NY pageant in the early eighties. When I saw it too was in shambles I burst out crying. I was too upset to even try to shoot it. It was so odd to me b/c I didn't know how strong an attachment I had to that memory until the tears came. I guess it meant more to me than I ever realized. Seeing this whole community, based around a mostly dead industry, in such a state of decay, was truly heartbreaking.


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ctfchallenge18-Apr-2004 21:53
Very poignant story and image. Thanks for sharing.
ctfchallenge17-Apr-2004 17:54
So sad Lonnit... I used to live in Kingston, Rosendale and New Paltz NY and have since visited. Ever since IBM left the area it has gone down hill. I worked for IBM there so I am particularly upset by the company's decision to abandon the area. Things do change and places do get left in the backwater. This is a beautiful picture of a dying past. Ann C
ctfchallenge17-Apr-2004 17:24
How sad. So often, I think we see (and photograph) these places because they're "picturesque," but perhaps we ignore the heartbreak behind their tumbledown status. You've made us think about the stories that all these places have. --Mary Anne