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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Twenty Three: Stirring emotions through atmosphere and mood. > Abandoned general store, Remote, Oregon, 2006
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12-JUN-2006

Abandoned general store, Remote, Oregon, 2006

This building, which once housed a general store and post office serving the aptly named community of Remote, has been shut down since the death of its owner in1993. Of the many photographs I made in its cluttered and crumbling rooms, this one best characterizes the mood of the place. Time is slowly eating away at the work of man here – spiders spin their webs, dust and mold and decay cover the walls, floors, and furnishings. In this image, we can see nature slowly taking over. In a final touch of irony, the pattern on the drape mirrors the leaves pressing on the window.

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Phil Douglis29-Jun-2006 20:22
Thanks, Sunlight pix for this comment. I enjoyed your views on the balances in nature, and their relationship to the cycles of light and dark. Nature is indeed a constant cycle of birth, decay, and rebirth, just as the cycles of light and dark mark the passage of time. But the work of man is at the mercy of the work of nature. I see the triumph of time as the theme of this image because the work of man exists for a finite period, ultimately to be consumed by natural processes. That is what I see happening here.
sunlightpix29-Jun-2006 19:00
What I like about this image is the contrast between the dusty decay within and the verdant life outside pressing against the window. Each is a natural process.
I'm not sure if I see the triumph of time here. During the month of the summer solstice, each process appears balanced, like yin and yang. Perhaps at the winter solstice it would portray man and nature in sync.
Phil Douglis22-Jun-2006 00:19
Irony is often a form of incongruity, Lorraine. I am delighted you are drawn to this image. The inevitable triumph of time is the theme here, and your reference to the spider's web as the linkage between the work of man and the work of nature is very appropriate. Thank you for coming to this image.
Guest 21-Jun-2006 22:24
I am very drawn to this image. The irony is there for all to see. The spiders web could almost be trying to join the two(drape and natures drape)together. L.
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