[re]establishing forgotten sites
EXPLORING DESTRUCTION & DECAY
Eddie Hausner
Protestors in front of Penn Station
August 2, 1962.
Cervin Robinson
Penn Station, concourse from south-east
April 24, 19
Arthur Brower
During the demolition, a view into Penn Station's main waiting room, which was still in use as the building was being torn down
July 6, 1965.
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Eddie Hausner
The gutted remnants of the building evoke the feeling of Ancient Ruins
June 22, 1964.
An issue that will forever be relevant; the destruction of something we value. Even with protest, the Penn Station was demolished and rebuilt in a new design. Interestingly, Eddie Hausner (photographer for the New York Times) likened the "gutted remnants" to "Ancient Ruins", perhaps demonstrating the historical value of the site and the ability to reminisce on what once was.
Stage 1
The building’s architectural design and construction, probably over a period of time, and possibly on the site of an earlier building.
Stage 2
Its useful life as a group of working buildings with all the alterations and additions that become necessary with changes in taste and use.
Stage 3
The abandonment of the building for occupation or other functions. On monastic sites there is often an immediate period of demolition and robbing; in the case of a domestic or defensive building this even might take the form of fire, siege or obsolescence, and a deliberate slighting.
Stage 4
The building is now a ‘ruin’. A period follows during which the ruins are derelict and the processes of decay advance dilapidation, possibly accompanied by further salvage of building materials and casual use for agriculture or other purposes.
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Stage 5
A period when the visual or ‘picturesque’ value of the ruins is recognised. Some tampering may take place to enhance the visual effect. This period in the eighteenth or nineteenth centuries includes the deliberate creation of ruins from historic fabric.
Stage 6
A period when the historical, as well as the visual, value of the ruin as a monument is recognised and attempts are made to arrest the process of decay and to protect the remains. Records, historical research and accurate drawings are undertaken.
Stage 7
Finally preservation: a period when attempts are made to stabilise the structure, to reinstate the ruin following investigation, possibly including the reassembly of fallen masonry, or even reconstruction with new material.
Gill Chitty (1987) A prospect of ruins, Transactions ASCHB, 12, 43-60.
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Does the materiality affect the outcome of erosion?
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The accidental composition made through the imposed destruction of these materials highlights the fragility in all forms. Small specs of the material leaves traces of where it had begun to deteriorate. Fine details are found within the point of impact, the rock reveals layers of a deep orange colour, the mirror's glass is cracked almost in a pattern of sorts, the apple shows its rotting core.
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Perhaps ruins could be defined as a mapping of the dilapidation caused?