REBECCA SKINNER, FRANKLIN, MASSACHUSETTS
I have spent over a decade photographing abandoned structures. Abandoned locations can be found in any demographic, but are most prevalent in areas that were once thriving.
Whether people left due to closing factories, loss of tourism, home foreclosure, or natural disaster, the sense of struggle and loss is clear. I photograph throughout the United States.
I belong to a group of like minded photographers that I travel with and am inspired by.
Each location has a story to tell. I hope to immerse the viewer in the scene, intertwining the viewer and the location into a single narrative of nostalgia and respect for the suspended moment. I portray these facilities not only as a preserved instance of a forgotten time, but as the summation of the place's history and beauty.
The locations I photograph are often dangerous, whether it be rotten floors or asbestos (requiring a respirator. I never go to these places alone, and feel strongly about leaving a location as I found it. I do not stage my photographs -- there is a story to be told and I do not want to affect it. I used natural light and a tripod for the images in this project.
Rebecca Skinner photographs abandoned spaces throughout the United States. She is a modern-day urban explorer seeking unique neglected structures and desolate places. Her subject matter ranges from large, cavernous spaces to minute details such as peeling paint and rust. Her locations are often dangerous to photograph in, whether because of rotten floors, falling plaster or asbestos (requiring a respirator), so she never goes alone.
Skinner brings to her work a strong ethic of leaving a location exactly as found. She does not stage her photographs-there is a story there to be told and she does not alter it. She uses natural light and a tripod for the images. Texture, color and light all play important parts in her image making.
Skinner is the owner/ director of Fountain Street Gallery based in Boston and a graduate of Rhode Island School of Design. Artscope and Upworthy are among the publications that have featured her work.
Escape, 18 x 12 in., photograph on aluminum, $500, edition of 5
Solitude, 12 x 18 in., photograph on aluminum, $500, edition of 5
Still, 11 x 17in., photograph on aluminum, $375, edition of 5
