Some new photos from Fort Wayne




A pair of metal motel chairs on the patio behind my parents' house.

As long as I can remember, my grandparents had a pair of these old metal chairs, which are called Motel Chairs because they often sat outside motel rooms in the mid twentieth century. They're common in the midwest, especially in rural areas, and are usually found in pairs. I began photographing my grandparents' chairs when I was in high school, and later I began buying them at garage sales.

The chairs in this photograph are some that I bought when I was in college in the late 1990s. I have a portfolio of photographs of other motel chairs, including those at my grandparents' house.

This is a Polaroid SX-70 Manipulation. Polaroid SX-70 was the first "All in one" Polaroid film; unlike earlier Polaroid films, you did not have to peel apart the film to get the finished print. Unlike the later Polaroid 600 and Spectra films, the image of an SX-70 print remained soft for several minutes after the image had completely developed. This was discovered soon after the film was introduced back in the 1970s and artists began using blunt tools like wooden sticks and crochet needles to smear the image and push parts of it around under the clear plastic that covered the front surface.

I learned to do this in art school in the late 1990s. Unfortunately the Polaroid SX-70 film was discontinued only a couple years later, so I have only a handful of these images. The Polaroid SX-70 film sold today is a totally different material that was introduced a few years ago by the newly resurrected Polaroid company. Unfortunately, the new SX-70 film hardens before the image appears and cannot be manipulated like the old stuff. Images like this can never be made again.

Late 1990s
 



This is a Polaroid snapshot of the Ramblers Roost Truck Stop. It is on the corner of Lincoln Highway (County Road 418) and Baker Road (County Road 163) near the town of Middle Point in rural Van Wert County, Ohio.

The old truck stop's business has suffered since US-30 was rerouted from the old Lincoln Highway to a newly built freeway nearby.

2-19-19

Update: In October of 2019, the owners of Ramblers Roost sold the business and retired. The new owners renamed it The Bear's Den on Lincoln. The Neon "Better Truck Stop" sign has been removed.
 





Another Polaroid SX-70 Manipulation.

This is the front passenger side wheel and fender of an old Ford Model A, a classic car made from 1927 to 1932.

Late 1990s
 
JoeV said:
Really loving these Polaroid images, Chris.
Click to expand...



Thanks, Joe. I have a lot more on the way!








This is a Polaroid snapshot of my son's house in Fort Wayne, Indiana. My grandparents bought this house in the late 1950s; and my mother spent most of her childhood here. When my grandma died, my mom and my uncle inherited the house and sold it to my son. I live here with him.

4-8-22
 




Another Polaroid SX-70 Manipulation.

I photographed this Indian tipi at the Johnny Appleseed Festival in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It belonged to a Native American named Dick Sutton who was a regular exhibitor at the festival back in the 1990s.

The Johnny Appleseed Festival is a pioneer festival held in September every year to honor John Chapman, the historical Johnny Appleseed, who died in Fort Wayne in 1845. The festival is held in the park where his grave is located.

Late 1990s
 



Another Polaroid SX-70 Manipulation. Native American Dick Sutton and his wife stand in front of their tipi at the Johnny Appleseed Festival in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Dick was a regular exhibitor at the festival back in the 1990s.

The Johnny Appleseed Festival is a pioneer festival held in September every year to honor John Chapman, the historical Johnny Appleseed, who died in Fort Wayne in 1845. The festival is held in the park where his grave is located.

Late 1990s
 




This is a Polaroid snapshot of the kitchen sink in my son's house in Fort Wayne, Indiana. My grandparents bought this house in the late 1950s; and my mother spent most of her childhood here. When my grandma died, my mom and my uncle inherited the house and sold it to my son. I live here with him.

We haven't changed the decor in the kitchen; it still has the same wallpaper that has been there as far back as I can remember, and the same old fashioned curtains.

I made this while testing out Polaroid's black & white SX-70 film.

March, 2022
 




One of my neighbors has several old cars and trucks parked behind his house. This is a Polaroid snapshot of the front of his turquoise 1958 Chevrolet Viking Low Cab Forward truck.

4-6-22
 




This is a Polaroid snapshot of a red 1954 Chevrolet pickup truck parked in front of Sit-N-Bull Pub in the small town of LaOtto, Indiana. I photographed it a little before sunset Saturday evening.

4-23-22
 




This is a Polaroid snapshot of an American flag flying from the front of an old brick storefront building on a windy afternoon.

The building is on West Main Street, just east of Runnion Avenue, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The building's main floor is occupied by a locally owned outdoor gear store called Earth Adventures Unlimited.

4-21-22
 




This is the first of two Polaroid snapshots that I made of a bunch of electric scooters lined up on the sidewalk in front of O'Sullivan's Italian-Irish Pub on the corner of West Main Street and Runnion Avenue in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

These scooters are rented out through a smartphone app and are found littering the sidewalks all over Fort Wayne's downtown area and surrounding neighborhoods during the warmer months of the year.

4-21-22
 




This is a Polaroid snapshot of O'Sullivan's Italian-Irish Pub, located on the corner of West Main Street and Runnion Avenue in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The West Main Street area is a working class neighborhood just west of downtown. O'Sullivans is an old neighborhood bar; but it also attracts a lot of college kids, and brings in a huge crowd on Saint Patrick's Day.

4-21-22
 
Italian-Irish pub? Where I grew up, back in the day, that would have been about as thinkable as a Democrat-Republican social club would be today! My uncle, a red-headed, freckled Italian of Sicilian descent (go figure!), used to have to fight for his life every day on his way home from school. Both tribes saw him as The Enemy. Your picture warms my heart, and reminds me that progress is possible.
 
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