Soviet Tank Graveyard

In Kiev, there is a large tank grave yard filled with rotting cold war era tanks. They are side by side and stacked on top of each other. Space is apparently a premium there. As a kid I used to love to visit Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. They have an outdoor tank museum that has nearly every WW2 tank a kid could want to see. Lots of cool German panzer tanks some of which are painted in their authentic colors. Back then you could even climb on them a bit. The hatches and gun ports were welded shut but it was easy to imagine those metal monsters springing to life and charging across the open Maryland countryside. Here is a picture of a Jagdtiger by Narayan Sangupta he has an excellent site on Aberdeen and has many pictures of the tanks there!

Urban Decay

I love pictures of old buildings. They have so much intricate detail that you often dont see replicated in the glass and steel skinned buildings of today. When I see a delightful old building sitting proudly restored my heart lifts a little - call me crazy but this has been the effect that buildings have had on me. Surprisingly then when I see an old decrepit building whose former glory is behind it I also am inspired. There is something about a weathered rotted out hulk of a building that speaks to me. I can remember back to when I encountered my first really grand ruins in the UK. The ones that I remember the most Fountains Abbey,Melrose Abbey and Rievaulx Abbey. As I got into photography in college, I found myself taking more pictures of buildings than people - much to the chagrin of women that I dated. Whenever I find a really cool photo essay on a ruin I naturally have to check it out. Today is one of those days...From the Blog The Kingston Lounge comes these amazing shots of a long abandoned institution on North Brother Island in the East River of NYC. Here is a shot of the former nurses quarters...

As a game designer I look at alot of rusty metal....

In games, we have a preoccupation with weathered surfaces. We cant help it - game lighting handles it really well. I suspect that smooth pristine and thus highly reflective surfaces require more complex calculations to light properly. I also suspect that a worn surface tells more of a story - it has character. So we have tons of rusted metal, cracked plaster, broken concrete and bubbling paint in games. Well here's a woman who takes old metal surfaces and makes them into items that are both beautiful and sculptural.

From Inhabitat