Following MY Father
My father has been the only consistent parental figure in my life. I began this project in college, following my father to an abandoned factory building in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. While there I was both enraptured by the building itself and began to contemplate a side of my father I’d never really seen before. My idea of a structural engineer had always been limited to what I had seen as a child visiting the office my father worked in. A lot of computers, drawings, and not much more.
After photographing the first mill I began to see the beauty in both his work and share in the love he has for these old, damaged, deteriorating buildings. Sometimes he was hired just to inspect the building, to ensure it was still safe, and sometimes he had to change the use of the building. Either way I could see his passion for them, and I knew that they were something special. I began to see him as a kind of explorer, alone in these old empty buildings, rediscovering worlds destroyed by fire, warped and forgotten by time and neglect.He measures every piece of a building down to an 1/8th of an inch.
He is in attics, basements, and everything in between. Rediscovering 18th century boiler rooms, 20th century elevator mechanics, and even lost and damaged possessions in burnt out buildings.
Sometimes he is called in to just do a structural assessment for safety or purchasing purposes, sometimes he’s called in for a full building remodel, or a roof analysis, occasionally to inspect the damage done during a fire or an accident. After having followed him for the last few years I’ve begun to see him as a kind of modern day explorer.
My father has supported me unquestioningly my entire life, often giving up much of his own for myself and my siblings. This project has changed the way I see my father from just “dad” into a full fledged professional who has an entire world outside of soccer coach, general cheerleader, and power napper. I want to highlight him and what he does with very little gratitude in the only way I know how.
