Greetings from Mt. Vernon, Ohio

I just returned from a short trip to Mount Vernon, Ohio... Not sure why, but the new surrounding sparked my interest... The bridge is located right outside the hotel...

I selected the top image, not just because it's awesome... ;) No, but it feels so fitting these days... Like a passage over an obstacle right in front of you, but you cannot make use of it...

More of the same bridge... Now from the other side and things are much less dramatic now... I guess that could be said for all kinds of events... Much less dramatic once you passed them... 

No clever analogies here... I just liked the orange trucks parked and the evening sun coming through...

Looks like an abandoned rest stop... Impressive shapes...

One of the main squares in town, I would assume... Didn't wander much further as the sun was setting and restaurants close at 9 pm the latest...

Same block from the side with a longer lens...

Old neon signs do bring out some nostalgia in me...

Last picture of the first evening... The office! Not sure what kind of office though...

This is from the next evening... Simple... Could be anywhere... I still like it...

Variations on the topic of "the way"...

Number 2...

 And number 3... I really like those tiles... And of course the light... And that they are not flat anymore... Might be impractical for walking, but very handy for allowing me capture some interesting imagery...

A Christian church for rent... I don't think I've seen that before... Would have liked to see the inside... But only found it on the last day of my stay...

Same church... Close up... 

Details...

Not really sure how my mind works... I guess I liked the structures, lines and resulting shapes... And decided to make a mini series out of it...

Like some kind of flag...

Closer... As usual decay makes for great images...

Crossed out...

Bearing a cross... 

Same town, different parking lot... Later that night...

Stepping into the light... Right from the depth of the hotel hallway...

Change of subjects...

This is the other long term personal project I'm working on these days... I have to admit, this is a strange one for me... I don't mean the moody, melancholic landscapes... These I know and love... But I'm not really sure I can completely sum up what this series is actually about... I guess I should start at the beginning: A friend (a tax accountant) asked me for prints to decorate her office located close to where I grew up... She loved my style, but felt that using images that I had already created would be unfitting or even pretentious on her end... That got me thinking... If I shot in that area there would be a connection by definition, wouldn't there? But what to concentrate on? Random landscapes of my "Heimat" (Could be translated into "homeland") was not specific enough for me... So I decided to focus on those crucifixes, shrines and other signs of public display of "Volksfrömmigkeit" (could be translated into "popular piety" or "popular devotion") that are so common in the mainly Catholic region where I grew up in... But I was not interested in close up shots of those artifacts, but wanted to look at how they are part of the landscape... How they shape it and are a natural part of it...

All the three images are on my running loop when stay with my dad in Nordvelen... (There some more on that loop, we might get to those in a later installment...)



Part of a Good Friday procession shrine series... Unfortunately only four are still to be found...

This one is part of the same series... Most likely was on the outskirts of the town when built... Love how the town crept up on it... Moody evening shot...

Back from the Baltic Sea...

I'm back now from a trip to Germany and getting used to being in the city again... Part of this trip I spent at the Baltic Sea... Interesting experience to have the next public internet connection a 20 minute drive away... It really slows you down... ;) But it's beautiful there!



I'm usually not one for unicorns and rainbows and such... But this was just too pretty not to shoot and show...



Close to the the smallest town in Germany, Arnis, if I recall correctly...



Pier and harbor stuff...



More pier and harbor stuff...



Landscape...



More landscape... I love how you can see nature adapting to the strong winds...



Even more landscape...



Lot's of landscape...



Reminded me of the similar ugly buildings on top of a mountain close to Aspen... Don't really know why this spoke to me... Most likely because it looks lonely & solitary...



Traffic sign for giants! Most likely not! :P

Monaco, the place - not the band...

I always wondered about the name of New Order Peter Hook's side project... "Monaco"
I mean there are a lot of images and emotions connected to this name... Not really fitting to a band with that kind of music, you'd think... Maybe it was meant to be tongue in cheek... But when I accompanied Mona to an awards ceremony and was able to see the place I was even more surprised...
But see for yourself!



I guess I was in a good situation to experience the most "New Order"-like feel for the city as it was already autumn... The weather was way better than in Germany where we just came from, but still left me with a feeling of displacement in that kind of location...


















All in all I have to say I really enjoyed visiting the place. I met lots of wonderful people and found quite a different place than I had anticipated... That might have to do with it being off season, but Monaco felt to me like a glamorously slow beehive past it's glory... with many surprises off the main streets... So, maybe Peter Hook was onto something after all!