photo sharing and upload picture albums photo forums search pictures popular photos photography help login
Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Forty One: Ruins and wrecks: photographing the rusted, busted past > Dining Room, Bodie State Historic Park, California, 2006
previous | next
21-OCT-2006

Dining Room, Bodie State Historic Park, California, 2006

This house is, by all standards, a ruin. Yet the table is ready for dinner, and an incongruous portrait of George Washington looks upon the scene without visible concern. This image asks us to consider the nature of a ruin – at what point does a house become unlivable? The greens and golds in this photo are hauntingly beautiful, even if the walls seem to be on the verge of crumbling. I made this image through a window, and the digital image is far brighter and much more vividly colored than the scene I saw with my own eyes.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ50
1/25s f/3.2 at 16.7mm iso100 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time21-Oct-2006 10:48:08
MakePanasonic
ModelDMC-FZ50
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length16.7 mm
Exposure Time1/25 sec
Aperturef/3.2
ISO Equivalent100
Exposure Bias-1.00
White Balance
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

other sizes: small medium large original auto
share
Phil Douglis24-Jan-2007 05:23
Thanks, Iris, for linking the history of Bodie with that of the nation. As you infer Bodie's luck eventually ran out. The Washington portrait amidst the decay of this room might well be interpreted as a metaphor for what could eventually be in store for the US as well.
Iris Maybloom (irislm)24-Jan-2007 00:23
As a member of the Constitutional Convention and first President, Washington was very optimistic about the promise of his country's future. How symbolic that this picture hangs in Bodie where I'm sure the people were equally as optimistic about the promise of their future. It doesn't always work out, however, as the residents of Bodie sadly found out. The picture, however, still hangs as an historical reminder of the hope that once resided here....and, perhaps, just hope in general.
Phil Douglis06-Nov-2006 18:49
Photography is time travel. It can us back into time and literally make us feel, touch and smell another era. As it does for you here, Ai Li. Not only do we transcend time, we also conquer space as well. Here I am in the US, sharing a picture I made in the Sierra Nevada Mountains with a young woman who lives in Singapore, and she is telling me that this image is taking her back to the days of George Washington! Actually, the portait of Washington was hung on this wall eighty years after his death. But historical nuances aside, the point remains that my image transported you to another time and place, which is part of the wonder of expressive photography.
AL06-Nov-2006 10:09
Felt like a time travel to the past when George Washington ruled! To me, I tend to find any place in a living condition unless the walls totally crumbled, leaving no roof and only loose bricks. As you said, the table set looked ready for dinner. Merely waiting for a new owner or diner...
Phil Douglis29-Oct-2006 06:14
Yes, Ceci -- it was a haunted vision. I find it amazing that your imagination views the decaying wallpaper and stained plaster as George Washington's campaign maps, even though there was no Bodie during his lifetime, and the westernmost state he ever visited was Pennsylvania. I just thought it was a perfect example of simple people believing in big ideas.
Guest 29-Oct-2006 05:44
Zowie, George disappearing before out eyes a la BACK TO THE FUTURE by Speilberg, with the wall he hangs on seemingly a conglomeration of maps, landscapes and perhaps even the rivers he crossed as he led his army to victory during the war. The naked socket hanging from the ceiling is a quiet reminder of man's mind at work in his dwellings, as well as the design of table, chairs, moldings and coat hooks -- yet despite all this creative power, it didn't keep people from fading away, or the dust of decades settling on what's left behind. A haunting scene, Phil, perfect for October 31st!!
Type your message and click Add Comment
It is best to login or register first but you may post as a guest.
Enter an optional name and contact email address. Name
Name Email
help private comment