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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Thirty-Five: How style and interpretation combine as expression > Derelict, Haynes, Arizona, 2006
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20-MAY-2006

Derelict, Haynes, Arizona, 2006

The interior of a long abandoned building, littered with refuse, comes to life again in a cascade of light that incongruously implies rebirth. The light is passing into the room through exposed ceiling boards, creating patterns both beautiful and tragic. Beams of light have come to symbolize divine power, while exposed walls and ceilings represent decay and disaster – a conflict that draws the eye and triggers the imagination. I also include a stove, the last identifiable remnant of human habitation, to add a touch of human values. The image offers an ambiguous interpretation – does this shower of light represent a blessing or a curse? It goes against my normal style, which is to say more with less. But there are times where I gladly modify my usual style for the sake of interpretive substance. In this case, there was more to say by showing the extent of both the damage and the amazing light display. There is much here for the eye to discover, and much for the mind to think about.

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Phil Douglis30-Nov-2006 20:09
Thanks, Jude --that was my intention: to ask questions and demand answers from my viewers. And thanks for mentioning the conceptual juxtapositon of "playful light" against "decay and abandonment." As I noted in my caption, I intended this ambiguity.
Jude Marion30-Nov-2006 13:41
The viewer is first drawn to the intricate streaks of light and the wonderful visual play they create. Then we are drawn to the various layers ... the plastic sheet, the fallen insulation, the stove and the open door. Suddenly, we realize the playful light is illuminating a scene of decay and abandon. This image poses many questions.
Phil Douglis07-Jul-2006 20:20
To bring life to desolation is one of expressive photography's great gifts, Armin. And light can be that catalyst that c can trigger life in dormant subjects such as this. Thank you for this observation.
arminb07-Jul-2006 16:38
I love the play with light myself, this is a very inspiring - the light here makes it full of life for me (not only energy, but somehow 'alive')
Phil Douglis07-Jun-2006 05:55
Without the shards of light, this image simply describes a room. The light makes it expressive, adding energy and symbolism to the mix.
Guest 07-Jun-2006 03:20
I like this on a lot as well. The shards of light streaking through the room make it a very dynamic composition!!!
Phil Douglis01-Jun-2006 18:58
Yes, I intend this as one of those images that asks the viewer a lot of questions. I love the questions it asks you, Celia -- and the answers you are pondering here. In a sense, you are making your own work of art out of this image. The thoughts that it triggers are more important than my original intentions. I made this image in both horizontal and vertical formats, both with and without the stove. The other images worked just as well in their own way, but they said different things. My student, Christine Newman, was shooting this room along side of me with a fisheye lens on her DSLR, and she later showed me a vertical version that blew me away! I hope that she will eventually post it so you can see how each of these images carries its own set of idea stimulators.
Cecilia Lim01-Jun-2006 15:29
The strips of white light slashing through this derelict place create a very surreal environment, making us wonder if this was heaven once, for somebody who made their home here, or was it hell? This image is like an open book of questions with so many loose ends - who lived here, what happened here, why was only the stove left behind, if they had tried to save the roof why did they give up, was there any happiness here, was there suffering here, is there hope for this place, will somebody care enough to salvage this place, will the forces of nature which have begun to invade this place eventually destroy what is left here? Part of your photographic style is to ask questions of its viewers, and make us participate in the experience of your images by encouraging us to think and wonder about them. This is strongly evident here and I think this is one of the reasons why we are so drawn to your imagery.

I also want to add that you did a perfect job of deciding what to leave out! You didn't show us the roof beams because they are implied in the shadows and I'm sure you could have stepped back and shown us more, but that would have made it too descriptive and literal, leaving little to imagination. I also love it that you created this image in colour, as I imagine it could also be changed to B&W to accentuate light, shadows and tones and give it that photojournalistic look, but the colours you kept gives it a sense of harsh reality. The colours here are also key to the mood of this place. I am definitely adding this to one of my all time favourites from your amazing collection of work Phil!
Phil Douglis24-May-2006 22:32
Thanks for noting the symbolism of the plastic sheeting here, Jenene. I was not sure anyone would notice it, but you certainly give it a positive role in the image. I also love your phrase "the light pierces the last attempts at decency" -- it is almost as if we are looking at a living entity reduced to bare essentials, yet somehow still managing to survive in hopes of that "better day." And in fact, that is what has been happening in Jerome. People are buying these derelicts and restoring them. So maybe you are right on the mark about that "better day," after all.
JSWaters24-May-2006 22:22
The light pierces the last attempts at decency - the dangling plastic sheeting that waged it's valiant effort to stave off the ravages of nature. The directional aspect of the light leads us out and away from this past to that far doorway and perhaps a better day.
Phil Douglis24-May-2006 18:28
Some will see the light and not into the shadows. Others will search the shadows and ignore the light. And still others will ponder the meaning of both. That is why this image works as expression -- it works on the human imagination in many different ways. Thanks, Shirley, for responding to this photograph.
Shirley Wang24-May-2006 18:01
To me, the exact detail in the shadow is not very important so long I can see what kind of condition it is in. I love the beauty of light that has showered in a shabby place.
Phil Douglis24-May-2006 04:26
Thanks, Carol for your impressions of this image. I am glad you came down on the side of the blessing, rather than a curse. And yes, I remember photographing that wonderful Foresta Barn, both inside and out, at Yosemite when I was there with Dave. The interior light patterns there were similar, but as you say, they did not have the same kind of content to illuminate. I chose to use an exterior image of that barn in my cyberbook. It is athttp://www.pbase.com/pnd1/image/35601771
Carol E Sandgren24-May-2006 02:48
My first thought is one of light from heaven above...one that shines down on refuse even though that's what it is. The old stove, as you say, represents a human value in this photo, so I see this as a blessing on all of us. The lines of light also remind me of the inside of hte Foresta barn that I just visited and photographed with Dave Wyman. Here there is much more information than in the barn, but still, that shower of light lines has the same effect.
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