Oct

New Perspectives on Beauty from Eric Holubow

by Janine Boylan on October 15, 2012

Abandoned space at Washburne Trade School in Chicago, Illinois, showing new perspectives on beauty

Abandoned space at Washburne Trade School in Chicago, Illinois
© Eric Holubow

Can There Be Beauty in Decay?

Eric Holubow, urban exploration photographer, gave me new perspectives on beauty. He creates haunting views into life’s changes through snapshots of glorious buildings as they fall into disrepair.

Abandoned Church

Gary, Indiana’s City Methodist Church once held nearly 3,000 members. Now its rainbow-colored windows have made way for exploring vines. Its floors beckon weeds, and its roof welcomes trees. Yet Holubow shows that it is still a place for inspiration.

Ruins of Holy Trinity Church in Gary, Indiana, showing new perspectives on beauty

Ruins of the Holy Trinity Church in Gary, Indiana
© Eric Holubow

Auto Manufacturing Plant

Detroit’s Packard plant was a modern and innovative automobile facility when it opened in 1903. Now the dense concrete walls are crumbling. The air is heavy with musty, decades-old rot. Holubow depicts a space waiting for its next chapter. But he includes a carefully-placed automobile seat that offers a view of inspiration and discovery in the future.

Remains of the Packard Auto Plant in Detroit, Michigan, showing new perspectives on beauty

Remains of the Packard Auto Plant in Detroit, Michigan
© Eric Holubow

Candy Factory

These images of Brach’s candy factory reveal layers of change. The snow has provided a pristine new carpet for the hallway. The walls boast spray paint as colorful as the candy once made there.

Hallway in Brach’s candy factory in Chicago, Illinois
© Eric Holubow

Like a resident ghost, paintings of the company’s signature candy refuse to be peeled away.

Wall in abandoned Brach's candy factory in Chicago, Illinois, showing new perspectives on beauty

Wall in Brach’s candy factory in Chicago, Illinois
© Eric Holubow

From Theater to Parking Lot

Some of Holubow’s images show buildings he caught just before they were leveled to make way for a new generation. Others, like this theater-turned-parking lot, show buildings that are already transformed with a new purpose and identity.

Michigan Theater in Detroit, Michigan, converted into parking lot and showing new perspectives on beauty

Parking lot on site of Michigan Theater in Detroit, Michigan
© Eric Holubow

Windows Into a Beautiful History

Holubow offers, “In these forgotten and overlooked places, I see not just loss, tragedy, or decay, but the chaos in which a new architect’s vision may be born.”

For me, each image is a window to the place’s beautiful history. I imagine the—

craftsmen who carefully laid each piece of stained glass

artists who spent hours carving and painting the intricate designs on the ceiling

worshippers who quietly shuffled through the aisles

workers who inspected thousands of sparkling wrapped candies

ushers who helped patrons to their velvety seats

person who slid the dirty bench to look out the gaping hole in the wall

teens who tagged the shiny white tile walls

Oh, I see such haunting beauty in this decay and gain new perspectives. What do you see? Leave a comment.

See more of Holubow’s images on Flickr and Facebook.

Inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Janine Boylan 1 Comment

The World's Photography/USA

Oct

Cultural Traditions Passed Down a French Street

by Sheron Long on October 8, 2012

The French village, where I live part-time, opened my eyes last week to the importance in France of passing along culture and heritage, or patrimoine. For French people, patrimoine has to do first with realizing that French arts, history, culture, language, and traditions are the property of everyone French and then with making the commitment to pass that “property” along to the next generation.

French family in a parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Multiple generations of a French family get set for the parade
© Sheron Long

Cultural Traditions on Parade

Passing along cultural heritage and traditions—that’s just what was happening last week on the streets of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, a pretty village in the south of France between Avignon and Marseille.

Each fall during the Fêtes Votives, Saint-Rémy remembers its past in a parade of old trades. Proud of their cultural heritage, citizens dress like their ancestors and portray their ancestors’ work roles as they walk twice around the road encircling the village.

Horses and donkeys march, too, and unruly sheep bleat, baaa, and bite at stacks of hay along the way.

Horse neighing in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Horse-drawn wagons recall yesteryear
© Sheron Long

Sheep in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Sheep and shepherds rest a moment during the parade
© Sheron Long

The connection to farm animals is part of the French patrimoine. In fact, everyone in the parade was honoring the agricultural past of Saint-Rémy. Young women in long skirts and straw hats tossed lavender from the harvest.

Women tossing lavender in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Women tossing lavender to the crowd
© Sheron Long

Farmers rolled rusty equipment through town.

Farmers and equipment in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Farmers and old farm equipment
© Sheron Long

The old winemaker harnessed his horses to haul full barrels of wine on his wooden wagon.

Winemaker in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Winemaker hauling old wooden barrels full of wine
© Sheron Long

The milkman used pedal power to pull two big jugs and one little girl.

Milkman in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Milkman pulling jugs of milk
© Sheron Long

New Generations Connect to Their Cultural Heritage

Every generation participated. In that afternoon together, the French did something more important than putting a smile on the face of the many spectators. They transmitted a love for their French patrimoine to the newer generations. I could see it in the faces of the younger participants.

Girls & donkey in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Younger generations participate
© Sheron Long

Boy on horseback waving in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Proud wave from a boy on horseback
© Sheron Long

And I saw it when I looked at babies who were not sure why they were in a pushcart that day. But I knew why—they were reaching out as if to grasp their French heritage, one that they, too, will soon value and pass along to the generation that follows them.

Oh, I see—if you value your cultural heritage, investing time in traditional celebrations like this one ensures its continuity.

Pushcart babies in parade celebrating French cultural heritage and traditions

Babies ride, too, and travel the road of tradition
© Sheron Long

I hope you enjoyed this glimpse of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. As a special treat, you can enjoy even more images of the south of France in these fun, free ebooks. Just click each image below:

Sheron Long Comments

Cultural Heritage & Traditions/France

Sep

Being Bilingual Builds Brain Power

by Sheron Long on September 24, 2012

If video does not display, watch it here.

French? You Can Learn It!

Chatting in a French café makes for a good day even in the rain. Chatting in a French café in French is worth even more—knowing the language, just some or being bilingual, deepens how you experience the life and culture.

Benefits of Being Bilingual

A brain lifting weights to signify the brain power of being bilingual (Image courtesy of Thinkstock)

Flex your brain with a second language and build bilingual brain power

Connecting across cultures is one benefit of being bilingual, but there are many more.

Across the last decade, numerous research studies, beginning with those from York University and Northwestern University, have shown that people who speak more than one language have an increased ability to concentrate, to multi-task, and to set priorities. They may also be building strong defenses against dementia.

So . . . if you’re someone who would love to build bilingual brain power, get started—it may be easier than you think!

The Power of Cognates

Take French, for example, which has many words in common with English. Such words are called cognates, and you can use them to learn a second language.

Try it! Here’s a paragraph from France-Amérique about Julia Child (1912–2004) who had many careers but found her love of cooking in Rouen, France. As you read about Julia Child, see how many French words look familiar to you:

Julia Child a eu plusieurs vies : rédactrice, volontaire pour la croix-rouge, agent secret… Mariée à Paul Child, un représentant des affaires étrangères américaines, elle part pour Paris à l’âge de 37 ans. Pour la petite histoire, c’est au cours d’une promenade à Rouen qu’elle a sa révélation culinaire, en goûtant une sole meunière accompagnée de vin. Ce repas sera comme « une ouverture de son âme et de son esprit » pour elle.

Does this list of cognates help?

volontaire / volunteer

agent secret / secret agent

mariée / married

représentant / representative

affaires étrangères américaines / American foreign (stranger) affairs

âge / age

histoire / history, story

au cours d’une promenade / in the course of a promenade

révélation / revelation

sole meunière accompagnée de vin / sole meunière accompanied by wine

esprit / spirit

Oh I know, there are still gaps to fill in, but in an “Oh, I see” moment, did you realize that you already know about 25% of the French in this article? That’s a pretty good start! Maybe it’s time for a ticket to Paris.

Comment on this post below.

Brain image courtesy of Thinkstock

Sheron Long 1 Comment

Becoming Bilingual/Crossing Cultures/France/Language & Culture

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