Darkened interior
Montreal, QC, August 2008 [Click to enlarge]
I know there must be a reason why someone at some point decided to brick off every visible window toward the top of this old downtown building. But since said person wasn't anywhere nearby when I found myself cradling my camera and wondering about this strange sight, I had no choice but to shoot first and keep my thoughts to myself.
But now that I'm able to write about it, I'd like your help, if you wouldn't mind...
Your turn: Why were this building's windows all covered up? What would possess an owner to do something like this ?
(Yes, we're still doing Thematic Photographic "faded" pictures here, and Caption This submissions here. They're both highlights of my week. I hope they're highlights of yours, too. New Thematic Photographic theme is coming later this evening. What will it be? You'll have to pop back in to find out! A little birdie tells me it'll be available at precisely 7:10 p.m. ET. Shhhh.)
One more thing: Wanna see me on TV? I spoke with Business News Network's Martin Cej and Francis Horodelski on Trading Day yesterday. We discussed Apple's new iPods and Research In Motion's prospects for its BlackBerry franchise going forward. Here's the link.
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6 comments:
well it reminded me that once upon a time long long ago in Ireland there used to be a window tax, and you can still see the bricked up windows on old houses of those who could'nt afford the light of day!
I think: They boarded up the windows to keep the influx (of whoever they were supposed to be) from peering out and wishing they could be elsewhere....
My initial reaction was some kind of Dickensian drone had taken the place over and didn't want his employees wasting time looking out the windows.
But more likely, whatever was being manufactured or stored there didn't play well with glass or sunlight or both. Archive libraries for instance never have any windows because they have to maintain very strict environmental control -- including fading UV rays and such. Other activities have the same requirements, or it's possible that there were operations going on that regulations required the brick job for public safety. Maybe if they were using arc welding equipment?
Not knowing what kinds of businesses might be/have been housed there, it's hard to say.
Could have also been a structural concern since it's an older building... but who knows.
Pardon me...I'm a bit dark. Vampires moved in...
I wonder - reminds me I haveseen various buildings with bricked up windows...might look out information on window taxes....it wouldn't surprise me if we had something here at one point!
Before their move to Rochester, New York, Kodak got tired of Eastman's day after day bitching.
"I don't see this photography idea, process or whatever it is you call it, ever developing."
And so was born the world's first darkrooms.
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