Blight,
a deteriorated condition.
-merriam-webster.com
a deteriorated condition.
-merriam-webster.com
With Detroit’s diminishing population and underfunded municipalities, the buildings of the city were neglected and became ripe with blight. The overgrown plant life and the crumbling architecture reformed the landscape of Detroit. Overtime, Detroit’s blight had spread throughout the city and became synonymous with the decline that the city was experiencing.
Detroit’s former state-appointed emergency manager Kevyn Orr emphasizes the blight problem in his filing of Detroit's bankruptcy saying, “Perhaps no issue is as fundamental to - or emblematic of - Detroit’s decline as urban blight... These decrepit eyesores dramatically undermine Detroit’s efforts to maintain public safety (as they contribute to the proliferation of crime and arson) and contribute to declines in property values.” |
THE PHENOMENA OF RUIN PHOTOGRAPHY
The concept of ruin photography or “ruin porn” is the capturing of images that depict decay or destruction. The pictures are usually of buildings, rooms, or areas in disarray. With the recent decline of Detroit, many vacant buildings have begun to fall apart and vegetation has grown over the remains. Many locations in the city have attracted many photographers and on-lookers to view the ruins of Detroit, something that has brought forth discussions on whether or not the fascination is ethical. Below are a few ruin photographs that I have chosen. These pictures both present the visual appeal of ruin photography as well as reveal the blighted architecture.
SCRUTINIZING RUIN PORN
Proponents of ruin photography view these pictures as a form of historical documentation, preserving imagery of a blighted Detroit is a part of its story. Others have suggested that the ruins bring tourism and can help bring money to the city. Architects like McLain Clutter see ruin porn as a form of autopsy and feel that there is a lot to learn from looking at the images. One the other hand, ruin photography has also been accused of fetishizing destruction, ignoring the problems of the buildings and generating a "regressive aesthetic". Some are concerned that the new interest in ruins and blight will slow down any redevelopment. An article in The Guardian condemns ruin photography, saying that it "ignores and overwrites the voices of those who still call Detroit home. When its ruins are fetishised as art, these injustices are, at best, ignored, and, at worst, mimicked. They ignore the humanity of residents’ current struggles, while replicating the history that created them". I personally feel that a lot of these images speak clearer than any statistic or interview could. Photographs of this nature do anything BUT ignore the state of the subject. Sometimes words cannot describe the condition Detroit is in.
1. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blight
2. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/25/detroit-blight-abandoned-buildings-bankrupt-_n_3651224.html
3. http://averyreview.com/issues/18/notes-on-ruin-porn
4. https://www.theguardian.com/housing-network/2016/feb/15/ruin-porn-detroit-photography-city-homes
2. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/25/detroit-blight-abandoned-buildings-bankrupt-_n_3651224.html
3. http://averyreview.com/issues/18/notes-on-ruin-porn
4. https://www.theguardian.com/housing-network/2016/feb/15/ruin-porn-detroit-photography-city-homes