An American City is an ongoing project in which I am documenting the post industrial neighborhood homes in Detroit MI where I grew up. The project, which will become a book when completed, is focused specifically on the abandoned and feral homes of the city and the reversal of the figure-ground relationship of these homes in relation to their landscape, as nature slowly reclaims the space inhabited by these derelict structures. The term feral home or houses is one that I had heard used while still living in Detroit and that I have adopted for my project. Refering to the homes as feral is a way of describing the state of the homes in relation to their surroundings, feral being defined by Oxfords English Dictionary as "that which has escaped from domestication and returned partly or in whole to a natural state". The word also has meaning in its Latin root, feralis, meaning "that which belongs to the dead". I also feel it is important to continue thinking about these structures as homes, the home being "a place where something flourishes, originates from or is most typically found". Home is also defined in Oxford's "as a place where one lives permanently". While the inhabitants of these homes may have moved on, their presence has not. In many of the pictures there still exists evidence of the physical occupants of the home—if in no other way than in memory and their lingering energy, these homes are still occupied with an eerie state of permanence, which is still visible if looked for.
An American City is an attempt to document the effects of post-industrialization in a city that was once the stronghold of American manufacturing. Once completed, the project in its book form will be published in limited edition with all of the proceeds from the book sales being donated to non-profit organizations working in Detroit with a focus on urban farming and neighborhood renewal. Once arrangements have been made I will publish the list of organizations receiving donations here.
click here to see the photos
