The South: Americana by the Roadside.
Angelique Droessaert Photography: I live in the South, in North Carolina.
I love driving in this beautiful state, from the mountains to the coastal areas, and see everything in between. I enjoy exploring backroads to learn more about the special beauty of this country, its landscapes and its people. Long ago I became intrigued with the South, American road side landscapes, the occasional flee market sign off the road, an abandoned farm, an old church... I became curious about the lives lived here. Abandoned houses in the country hold a special fascination
While traveling on Southern highways I stop way too often, to be comfortable company in anyone else's car. My friends have learned to become very patient with me: a normal two hour drive for them might end up a four hour drive for me, before I get to destination for dinner. Initially it seemed odd to them that I would find these old shacks, or abandoned farmhouses of interest, ...but when they saw my pictures they understood. And they graciously allowed me the "creative space " to do what I needed to do--- without getting mad at me for being late for dinner...
The only person I can really travel with on these roads is my supportive husband---I learned long ago, that spotting the points of interest along a fast passing landscape to the right and left, and keeping eyes focused on traffic and safe driving--do not match. So my husband, my trusty companion, chauffeur, gear lugger and back up help... We have developed a particular driving style when on road trips: most of my lenses, gear and tripods are on the backseat, main camera in hand, ready -- to shoot at a short notice to catch that elusive crane, that fallen log over a backwater with some ten terrapins sunning...or that old abandoned homestead. My husband watches out for the traffic and finds a safe place to stop as I jump out of the car and try to catch my subject--this might be a quick sequence of snap shots to catch wildlife, or perhaps a lengthier 40 minute sauntering across ditches and trenches, over and under fences, ignoring notices to keep out, and at the threat of being shot in some of the more isolated countrysides... I am just an artist and a photographer, pursuing my fancy of the moment--- collecting for my series "Americana," and my interest is purely artistic. But sometimes people can feel threatened or invaded by my activities. I realized that some people may consider me snooping, or an unwelcome intrusion into things that are none of my business. Some are not too welcoming about it--others are cool with it when they realize I am not with the narcotics department, social services or anything else--just an artist with a camera documenting the South----.... I have over the years probably stumbled across one or two hidden met labs in old farmhouses or the secret growing house of certain illegal crops.. and worse. I have had dogs called on me and had to freeze and retreat--- and I learned to thread carefully, be very respectful of people, their privacy and making sure I looked as authentic a photographer as I could, with a professional jacket, a couple of cameras around my neck and calling cards... and cultivating a general smiling, friendly demeanor... to alleviate any suspicion towards me. It helps that I am a woman and I make sure to cultivate the image as a clueless tourist when in a tight spot, but more than once did I stumble back to our car, my heart racing, glad to have gotten out of a "situation," glad my husband, a tall guy was there--- and very happy to get away... My work also has led to some hazardous near encounters with cars and motorcycles, or on major highways with trucks whizzing by so close I would cross myself and thank the Lord I did not end up roadkill... ;-) (Sometimes to take the best shot --you have to stand in the middle of the road) ...
Ten years ago, intrigued by these old houses and the collections of "antiques" off the roads, and in possession of a good digital SLR cameraI, I started to collect shots and photos as we were driving on Carolina and Virginia roads. Some 5 years later, I realized I had bulging folders of digital photos from my ventures. I formed project "Only in America," a collection to document the South as good as I could, its present landscapes, and a lost culture, an era that still is remembered, but each year less. It is the country of apple pie and chevrolet, front porches with rocking chairs; Reminiscing of days before tv, when neighbors came to chat or visit each other, and sat out front on a mild summer evening, after a long day in the field. On the roads I travel, except for the occasional fast food chains, the gas stations at intersecting highways, there are not many neon signs, and no high rises... But as the textile industries and furniture factories across Carolina close, as tobacco and cotton farmers are driven out of business, as grandparents die and a younger generation longs for modern comforts, old homes are abandoned... as witnessed when driving on Southern roads and highways.
The eery beauty of these abandoned houses fascinates me. They tell stories about people who were born here, lived full lives and died--- generations of family members. Visions of hard work, cycles of Thanksgivings and Christmasses, of birth, marriages and deaths... all of these impressions float through my mind when I explore these houses, their settings, walk around them, examine the landscape. I investigate, meeting the occasional snake, stirring up a flock of nesting birds... peeking into dulled windows, hung with spiderwebs. Small tendrils of growing vines inch their way up the outside and find a way inside...
I photograph these houses with impressions coming to me, while the wind rustles in the leaves, letting them whisper their memories to me. I try to hear the stories they tell, stories of young hope when the houses were built, the homesteads founded, happy couples' dreams of children born, additions to the homestead, more babies, more barns, -- and the sorrow of death and mourning over a loved one, the eventual decay of the house and a life style, despair or loss of interest that may have caused the properties to be abandoned, generations later. There is a romance here, looking at these windows and wondering about the lives lived here, while now only the winds whisper through the broken glass panes, the doors ajar, the caved in roofs, the rusting tin or the gaping holes in the side boards....
Of course, these fascinating houses have to be seen in the beauty of the North Carolina landscape, and so I am including a few scenic landscape shots from the state. My collection is quite large, so large that I have not yet evaluated all the shots and worked with them to show--- it is an ongoing process or shooting expeditions and long hours sitting behind my computers evaluating, selecting, and editing my work. I am only featuring a few pictures here, indicative of a larger body of work.
The pictures in this collection can be custom ordered. For more information contact me: angelique@adartphoto.com
Read MoreI love driving in this beautiful state, from the mountains to the coastal areas, and see everything in between. I enjoy exploring backroads to learn more about the special beauty of this country, its landscapes and its people. Long ago I became intrigued with the South, American road side landscapes, the occasional flee market sign off the road, an abandoned farm, an old church... I became curious about the lives lived here. Abandoned houses in the country hold a special fascination
While traveling on Southern highways I stop way too often, to be comfortable company in anyone else's car. My friends have learned to become very patient with me: a normal two hour drive for them might end up a four hour drive for me, before I get to destination for dinner. Initially it seemed odd to them that I would find these old shacks, or abandoned farmhouses of interest, ...but when they saw my pictures they understood. And they graciously allowed me the "creative space " to do what I needed to do--- without getting mad at me for being late for dinner...
The only person I can really travel with on these roads is my supportive husband---I learned long ago, that spotting the points of interest along a fast passing landscape to the right and left, and keeping eyes focused on traffic and safe driving--do not match. So my husband, my trusty companion, chauffeur, gear lugger and back up help... We have developed a particular driving style when on road trips: most of my lenses, gear and tripods are on the backseat, main camera in hand, ready -- to shoot at a short notice to catch that elusive crane, that fallen log over a backwater with some ten terrapins sunning...or that old abandoned homestead. My husband watches out for the traffic and finds a safe place to stop as I jump out of the car and try to catch my subject--this might be a quick sequence of snap shots to catch wildlife, or perhaps a lengthier 40 minute sauntering across ditches and trenches, over and under fences, ignoring notices to keep out, and at the threat of being shot in some of the more isolated countrysides... I am just an artist and a photographer, pursuing my fancy of the moment--- collecting for my series "Americana," and my interest is purely artistic. But sometimes people can feel threatened or invaded by my activities. I realized that some people may consider me snooping, or an unwelcome intrusion into things that are none of my business. Some are not too welcoming about it--others are cool with it when they realize I am not with the narcotics department, social services or anything else--just an artist with a camera documenting the South----.... I have over the years probably stumbled across one or two hidden met labs in old farmhouses or the secret growing house of certain illegal crops.. and worse. I have had dogs called on me and had to freeze and retreat--- and I learned to thread carefully, be very respectful of people, their privacy and making sure I looked as authentic a photographer as I could, with a professional jacket, a couple of cameras around my neck and calling cards... and cultivating a general smiling, friendly demeanor... to alleviate any suspicion towards me. It helps that I am a woman and I make sure to cultivate the image as a clueless tourist when in a tight spot, but more than once did I stumble back to our car, my heart racing, glad to have gotten out of a "situation," glad my husband, a tall guy was there--- and very happy to get away... My work also has led to some hazardous near encounters with cars and motorcycles, or on major highways with trucks whizzing by so close I would cross myself and thank the Lord I did not end up roadkill... ;-) (Sometimes to take the best shot --you have to stand in the middle of the road) ...
Ten years ago, intrigued by these old houses and the collections of "antiques" off the roads, and in possession of a good digital SLR cameraI, I started to collect shots and photos as we were driving on Carolina and Virginia roads. Some 5 years later, I realized I had bulging folders of digital photos from my ventures. I formed project "Only in America," a collection to document the South as good as I could, its present landscapes, and a lost culture, an era that still is remembered, but each year less. It is the country of apple pie and chevrolet, front porches with rocking chairs; Reminiscing of days before tv, when neighbors came to chat or visit each other, and sat out front on a mild summer evening, after a long day in the field. On the roads I travel, except for the occasional fast food chains, the gas stations at intersecting highways, there are not many neon signs, and no high rises... But as the textile industries and furniture factories across Carolina close, as tobacco and cotton farmers are driven out of business, as grandparents die and a younger generation longs for modern comforts, old homes are abandoned... as witnessed when driving on Southern roads and highways.
The eery beauty of these abandoned houses fascinates me. They tell stories about people who were born here, lived full lives and died--- generations of family members. Visions of hard work, cycles of Thanksgivings and Christmasses, of birth, marriages and deaths... all of these impressions float through my mind when I explore these houses, their settings, walk around them, examine the landscape. I investigate, meeting the occasional snake, stirring up a flock of nesting birds... peeking into dulled windows, hung with spiderwebs. Small tendrils of growing vines inch their way up the outside and find a way inside...
I photograph these houses with impressions coming to me, while the wind rustles in the leaves, letting them whisper their memories to me. I try to hear the stories they tell, stories of young hope when the houses were built, the homesteads founded, happy couples' dreams of children born, additions to the homestead, more babies, more barns, -- and the sorrow of death and mourning over a loved one, the eventual decay of the house and a life style, despair or loss of interest that may have caused the properties to be abandoned, generations later. There is a romance here, looking at these windows and wondering about the lives lived here, while now only the winds whisper through the broken glass panes, the doors ajar, the caved in roofs, the rusting tin or the gaping holes in the side boards....
Of course, these fascinating houses have to be seen in the beauty of the North Carolina landscape, and so I am including a few scenic landscape shots from the state. My collection is quite large, so large that I have not yet evaluated all the shots and worked with them to show--- it is an ongoing process or shooting expeditions and long hours sitting behind my computers evaluating, selecting, and editing my work. I am only featuring a few pictures here, indicative of a larger body of work.
The pictures in this collection can be custom ordered. For more information contact me: angelique@adartphoto.com