face of a city, a photo from Massachusetts, Northeast

Photographer's Note

Holyoke, in Western Massachusetts, was planned and build in the mid-nineteenth century as a manufacturing city around three main power canals with urban brick construction. The city is one of the first planned industrial communities in the United States. It also is the birth-place of Volleyball.

Nowadays, the city unfortunately is known mostly for its high poverty and crime rates and abundance of abandoned brick buildings. The latter look quite good in the evening sun though (see the workshop for a more straightforward view of the place).

Much of the original Early Industrial fabric remains intact, including Greek Revival style textile mills and row housing at Great Falls Dam, period warehouses and railroad sheds along Race Street canal, Italianite business blocks on Main and High Streets and early Catholic Church and schools around Hampden Park.

Some facts on Holyoke:

First European settlement: early XVIII century
City charter: 1848
Water power potential: the greatest theoretical waterpower potential of any site in New England
Manufacturing peak: early XXth century
All time highest population (>60,000): late 1920's
Current population: around 40,000
Current households under the poverty line: >25%
Current single mother households: ~ 25%
Children qualifying for subsidized lunches: ~70%
Late night red traffic-light policy: don't stop!...

belido, avene has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

belido (19934) 2009-12-10 9:51

Hi Kristaps,

an old and abandoned industrial area but still a nice place for photographing. Very nice abstractism you saw on the water reflection. Love the combination of the orange and red colors. I also find quite interesting the image in the ws. Can you guess what would happen if this scenario is in Brazil? I tell you, it would be full of people, poor people. And then smart ones would start to commercialize the lots. Interesting note as well, sad story about Holyoke. Great one!
Regards,
Carlos

CLODO (45118) 2009-12-10 9:56

It's halloween, Kristaps!
very saturated warm hues with 2 blue eyes. That's the devil?
Congratulations for your vision
CLODO

sayeed_rahman (6461) 2009-12-10 10:25

Okay the graphic and the abstraction is just great and i'd love to have a large print on a lounge wall...my wall..my room..in my very space..

but hey..

that's an amazing piece of glass..i'd love to see the real stuff too..and i am going to come back specially to see what youve created using it..

Its strange but there is a tendency of being inspired or motivated just because the piece of glass produces superior results..the experts will sure debate this to a million words..but that is a trend i am seeing around me..but really its the call from within that we have to answer..

I'll be back - (sounds like the governor of kaaliforrrnia) ;)

sayeed

COSTANTINO (117884) 2009-12-10 11:16

Hello
Looking at this shot everybody s imagination can
create...The picture shows an abstraction but it is very impressive
nice work just great
regards

Costantino

xavshot (69835) 2009-12-10 12:00

Bonsoir Kristaps
j'aime beaucoup le contraste et la luminosité de ces reflets. Belle image graphique.
Xavier

pajaran (117137) 2009-12-10 12:32

Pozdrav sa Balkana iz Srbije.
Vrlo interesantna fotografija sa dobrim tekstom, lepih boja i pokreta. Svidja mi se vas rad.
Puno pozdrava i uspeh u daljem radu, zeli vam Paja.

Google.

Greetings from Serbia to the Balkans.
Very interesting photos with a good text, nice color and movement. I like your work.
Many regards and success in future work, he wants you Paja.

LOOOK13 (19046) 2009-12-10 13:19

Salut.
Beau tableau, des couleurs trés chaudes, bon petit cadrage et trés belle compo.
Bravo.

avene (12675) 2009-12-11 7:56

the reflection does indeed look like a face, may be wincing in pain? pity about the fate of the city, the beautiful brick buildings along the canals would be perfect for restaurants, art studios and boutiques. but I guess you're right, Holyoke is too far from major urban centers to support such a development. in any case, we have to go back and hunt for some more light on the red bricks :)

hugs,
K.

marietom (34611) 2010-08-27 10:17

hello Kristaps,

Yeahhh, orange !
Nice reflection, very weel seen. I like this saturated colors.
Bonne soirée
Marie