Let me start off with a little background. From an early time in my artistic career, I was attracted to abandoned locations. In high school, I would go to Woodville State Hospital an abandoned state institution located in Collier, PA. I would walk the abandoned halls exploring and taking photographs of outdated fixtures and peeling paint.
http://www.clpgh.org/research/pittsburgh/history/orphanages/WSH.html
When I was in college I had the opportunity to model for photographer Mark Perrott in his series ROYGBIVhttp://www.markperrott.com/ He gave me one of his books Hope Abandoned where he had photographed Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA. As an Artist and Explorer I was drawn to this place in his photographs and was not until a couple of years ago that I was able to visit it to photograph it myself. There is something about quiet empty hallways that makes me feel at peace. If you are ever in the Philadelphia area it is a must see along with the Mutter Museum of Medical Oddities.http://www.easternstate.org/ http://www.collphyphil.org/MUTTER.ASP
I have just added a new album to my gallery of the photos that I took when I was there. Please take a look and let me know what you think.
I would love to talk to you or email. My husband of 50 years and I are living in a community called Neville Park on the old Woodville State Hospital grounds in Collier, PA. I used to live here on the grounds in 1960-1961 when my mother married the Fire & Safety Director who lived on the grounds to the right of the fire dept. My husband and I had our first date when I lived here and now we are back after 50 years living here. I am trying to find out the exact spot where my step-father, William (Mack) Paul,s house was located We have an approximate location, but are not positive. My mother also worked here and that's how she met my step-father. Mack Paul worked here for 42 years. I would love to discuss this with you at your convenience. My email is karenlieben@yahoo.com. I would love to see the pictures you took when you were a student at Chartiers Valley. I was not able to locate them. I was the last graduating class of Bridgeville High School before it became Chartiers Valley.
ReplyDeleteKaren Liebendorfer, 412-221-8171.