Overview

Les etres humains ont toujours ete fascines par les ruines des societes qui les ont precedes. Le desir de mieux comprendre notre passe pousse les archeologues, les artistes et les savants du monde entier a etudier les vestiges d'epoques revolues dans l'espoir d'en saisir toute la mystique et la beaute. Lance pour documenter la grandeur et la decadence du systeme des hopitaux publics du pays, le projet Etats-Unis abandonnes s'est rapidement elargi a d'autres lieux en desherence: usines, friches industrielles, ecoles, eglises, centrales thermiques, cliniques, prisons, installations militaires, hotels, stations balneaires, logements... A travers ses recits et ses photographies, son auteur, Matthew Christopher, a passe les dix dernieres annees a immortaliser les ruines de l'une des plus grandes civilisations que le monde ait jamais connu: la notre. A la decouverte de lieux comme les ruines calcinees de l'hotel Do De, les cellules rouillees de l'annexe de la prison du comte d'Essex, les restes majestueux de l'eglise de la Transfiguration ou les reliques etranges de la loge des Elks de New Castle, ses photographies nous plongent dans des monuments d'architecture laisses en proie aux elements et, trop souvent, deja perdus a jamais. A travers son travail, Matthew Christopher envoie un message fort sur le chomage, la deliquescence des villes, le contexte artistique et architectural d'edifices emblematiques ainsi que la transmission et la conservation du patrimoine. En plein marasme economique, dans le sillage de l'effondrement de l'industrie aux Etats-Unis, ces questions n'ont jamais ete aussi d'actualite pour saisir l'identite americaine. Suspendus au seuil de la vie et de la mort, les edifices immortalises par Christopher rayonnent d'un silence qui en dit long. Ces photos semblent nous confier un secret extraordinaire. Jane Derenowski, journaliste, NBC Nightly News

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9782361955236

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Reviews

Matthew Christopher's photographic record of decay depicts the tragic truth: that something extraordinary has ended and that nothing like it may ever come back. We're now going in the other direction despite a lot of wishful thinking: toward a loss of complexity, a reduction in the scale of activity, a loss of artistry, and probably the end of many comforts, conveniences and amenities we've come to take for granted. James Howard Kunstler, author of The Geography of Nowhere The places Christopher photographs tell their stories with silence and extraordinary light - the spaces between the life and death of a building. His pictures make me feel like someone told me a secret. Jane Derenowski, Reporter, NBC Nightly News It's romantic, it's nostalgic, it's wistful, it's provocative. It's about time, nature, mortality, disinvestment. Joann Greco, The Atlantic Cities Through his photographs, Christopher makes a powerful statement about job loss, urban blight and historic preservation. In light of the collapse of American industry and the subsequent economic meltdown, the relevance of these topics has never been more important to the examination of America's national identity. Joseph and Barrie Ann George, The Sentinel

Author Information

Matthew Christopher has had an interest in abandoned sites since he was a child, but started documenting them a decade ago while researching the decline of the state hospital system. While he originally had no formal education in photography, Matthew has recently completed his MFA in Fine Art Photography. He has had gallery shows across the US, been featured on NBC Nightly News, lectured on abandoned spaces and mental health history for the Pennsylvania State Museum, Preservation Pennsylvania, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, and others, and his work has been in several publications/media outlets including Photographer's Forum, the Weather Channel, The Huffington Post, the International Journal of Arts and Humanities and the United Nations Chronicle. His website, abandonedamerica.us, has gained international attention and is considered one of the leading collections of images of abandoned spaces on the internet.

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