SOLVAY COKE PLANT: CREEPIER THAN EVER

Last week I wandered back to the abandoned Solvay Coke Plant that I have visited many times before to see if there was much new.  I decided that it was getting even creepier than before.  It was a Sunday morning and I didn't see anyone else the entire time I was there; nevertheless, I felt even more uncomfortable than I have in the past.

First there were the Hail Satan signs.

Not that they should bother me of all people, but still . . . .  And then there were some other items that had not been there in the past, such as the following.

And then I noticed the many large fake spiders that had been hung from the ceiling.

Also there was this.

In other ways, though, the place had remained the same--the trash, the graffiti upon graffiti, the general decrepitude.  Who would come to this place, anyway?

I did get a few structural shots that I hadn't before, including one of the ceiling (which is probably lined with asbestos) and one of a pigeonhole arrangement.

I also noted a number of fresh graffiti, including the following.

I guess you could say the above was something of a political statement.

I also liked the élan of the following "sign."

Finally, I wound up liking the following shot for the texture of the deteriorating paint, though that's a bit difficult to see at the resolution available on this blog site.

Although I brought my tripod, knowing that it would be quite dark on the interior, I wound up not using it in favor of shooting handheld at a much higher ISO (generally between 800 and 1600).  After all, we're not talking about museum quality shots here.

I continue to be impressed with the quality of graffiti art, and one could ask why these artists would come to a place like this, knowing that, for the most part, their work is only going to be appreciated by their fellow artists.  On the other hand, no one really cares about this place, so the artists' work is likely to have greater longevity, even though very few will have a chance to appreciate it.

John