Abandoned Southern Michigan: Skeletons of Industry

Author: Rickman, Bryce

Paperback: 96 pages

Publisher: Arcadia

This book seeks to serve as a collection of photos of abandoned and decaying buildings that litter the towns and cities of Southern Michigan, from a massive abandoned paper mill near Kalamazoo to the skeletal remains of the once thriving industries of Detroit, and an amalgam of now abandoned amusement parks, roadside attractions, and factories in between, from Adrian to Saginaw. These pictures aim to express the sense of wonder and the eerie undertone that comes with exploring places stuck in time, whether they have been widely reclaimed by nature, are simply left to decay and crumble, or are destined to be restored by a caretaker of history. These places stand just as they were the day they were forgotten. Glimpse inside of monoliths on a vicarious excursion through an exercise of empathy. There is beauty in broken glass, comfort in the quiet stillness of liminal spaces, and history in the skeletons of concrete.