James Sansing
These are photographs of an abandoned juvenile hall. I spent several years photographing the interior. I knew it more intimately than anyone. It was my escape from depression. In these photographs I waited months for the right combination of interior and exterior elements (sun, wind). I knew these rooms as if they were an installation I was creating, yet I touched nothing. These photographs are internal, reflecting this period in my life; while the ledgers are more external, reflecting the role this building played in the past.
The ledger photographs are from the same juvenile hall. The ink stains and mold growth threaded their way through the veins of the paper, making Rorschach patterns. This natural phenomenon is a powerful poetic illustration of the psychological impact this institution had on the children detained there.