Readers of the comments on my first set of sepia pictures will know that I had an inquiry about where this picture was taken.
Karen, rather than put this in the comments section, I decided to make it another admission to the TP:Sepia group.
Fortunately I keep my pictures in chronological order, so it wasn’t too hard to track down where the picture was taken. Rhyolite, Nevada is about 100 miles (162 km) northwest of Las Vegas, just 9 miles (15 km) from the California border. It’s on a nicely paved road, just about a 2 miles (3 km) off Nevada SR 374. The bicycle is actually before you get to the actual city ruins, there is a little enclave or weird art work strewn around the hillside. Then just a short drive up the hill you see the first buildings of what used to be the main street of Rhyolite. I left a couple of them in full color, as you’ll see they would have lost a lot in the transition to sepia.
An old wagon down by the weird artwork.
This rock spiral was the first thing we saw.
A big iron sculpture of a miner and a, a penguin? I’ve heard of a canary in a coal mine, but never a penguin.
A concrete couch with inlaid tiles.
And it’s backside.
It looked like it could have been an entrance to an old mine, or some sort of water delivery system.
Buildings down by the artwork.
This one looked a big concrete “lego woman”. Weird thing to be out there in the middle of nowhere.
More of the ghostly sheets, this time they form the “Last Supper”.
This was on top of a pole, not quite sure what it is supposed to be.
The Rhyolite Merchantile.
Inside the school.
A couple more buildings on the main strip.
Rattlesnakes. Gotta love those rattlesnakes.
Old Union Pacific caboose in what used to be the middle of town.
Inside the caboose.
Looking down towards the other buildings from the middle of town.
The old railroad station (and casino).
12 comments:
It's not a penguin; it's Randy in his snowsuit from "A Christmas Story." (Ralphie, I can't get up!)
Okay, I am not getting the connection here. Why a mosaic sofa, the last supper, and a Lego woman in a ghost town??? Graffiti one expects. And perhaps even a mock spiral jetty put up by bored kids. But modern art in a ghost town? Huh?
Hey, I don't get it either. I'm just the messenger, don't shoot me.
.
But seriously, it was kind of weird. Like some artist, ala The Mataphor, Tree of Utah decided to set up camp there one summer. I have to admit, those people-less sheets of plaster were kind of creepy.
Okay, well, I guess it's better than tagging.....
Oh very cool, not much better suited to sepia subject than an old ghost town. Odd about the art, but I gave up trying to understand "why" people do things a lot of years ago.
Wow so very interesting and cool, while maybe the people were a bit odd? you say, but artists so... You must have felt like walking into a S. King story...but so worth the time to view all of this art none the less. We have something near here, called Franconia outside of the town Taylors Falls where artists go out and build their creations, and people come from all over to see their work....so far these artists have been very interesting! Thanks Max for putting this together, and I plan on putting this stop on my list!
also I forgot to mention I love the background on your blog...it makes you want to see the entire picture...is it rain or snow or ???
Writer - true, true.
Sally - yeah, I used to wonder "why" a lot. Had to give that up when I started teaching junior high.
Karen - that's my dirt-bike riding kokopelli in the snow. You can see the whole picture here.
Thanks very cool dirt bike!
omg Max what a stunning series of shots - if a little bizarre in places ;) The sepia is so good and has almost converted me to liking it - obviously it depends a great deal on the picture for its appeal.
I love them all - except the Lego lady, which is just too weird to be true
very,very cool
Karen - no problem. And that's what I thought when I saw it in the shop down in Moab, which is why I just had to get it for my front porch.
Alexia - agreed, that Lego Lady is just weird, and a little bit creepy. My older brother and I both went "What the ...." when we saw it, and couldn't for the life of us figure how it fit into the scheme of things.
It's pretty obvious that walking through a town that time forgot by your side would be a hugely rewarding experience. You don't just take pictures: You tell the story of every scene. That's not just great photography, it's also great storytelling.
These are, without exception, magnificent.
Carmi - thanks. There is a weird feeling from walking through the remains of a town that was once a vibrant community, to imagine what it was like in it
s hey-day. I've been searching out ghost towns in this area ever since I got my driver's license and a car, oh so long ago.
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