| Old buildings deserve to be documented--all the
more so when hundreds or thousands of
lives have played out within their walls and courtyards. This is a Southern
California building complex in transition, its history as a mental
institution a fast-fading memory spread in the bleaching sun and
written in interior shadow and dust. Soon it will be reborn:
clean, bright and remodeled, pushing the memory of its former
existence with its anguish, joys and ambiguity farther and farther
toward a murky depth where no one will be able to learn the stories
and lessons it offers. I have taken these pictures to serve as a
continuing record, as well as a reflection of a time and setting...
and an introduction to those who haven't known this place before. |
