if walls could talk...

I have always been fascinated with history, especially how it lingers. In the Utah Valley area there is  a tremendous amount of architecture that is leftover from past periods. Often this architecture is overlooked because it has been adapted, painted, or renovated into something else. However, basic elements of a building can still gesture towards its original use. There is a pizza parlor off Springville Mainstreet. It is a pleasant building, but many decades ago the building was used as a hotel. My mission was to capture certain elements of the building that still resonate with its historical and original use as a hotel. My shots became more detail shots, but I like to consider each detail with the context of the building as it was originally used.

Above is a step behind the pizza parlor. I liked how plain and ordinary it is, even though it once acted as a threshold for the hotel. Something so ordinary as a rotting wooden step is actually a part of history. The details seem to speak to the building in its hay day.

The above image is a shot of the brick wall behind the parlor. The peeling paint seems to show the passing of time, where there are various layers from the various uses of the building. Even though the building is now white, there are patches of blue paint and plain brick seen.

The above image is a shot of the brick wall behind the parlor. The peeling paint seems to show the passing of time, where there are various layers from the various uses of the building. Even though the building is now white, there are patches of blue paint and plain brick seen.

Above is my favorite leftover element from the hotel. The sign "rooms entrance" is still visible above the old door. I imagine patrons passing in and out of this door that is now unused for the most part. Above this old door and sign is an awning that more closely matches the new use of the building as a pizza parlor.

This last shot is a view looking up at the brick wall attached to the building. This texture shot allows an onlooker to picture themselves in that position, staring up at this wall that is obviously whitewashed. I wonder what the wall looked like for the original hotel, for patrons passing under the building and staring up in a similar fashion. I imagine they would be able to see the plain brick that is hidden under the white.