My name is Caleb Stein, and I’m a recent graduate of Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. “Down by the Hudson” is an ongoing project I’m working on. It’s a record of my walks and interactions, mostly along a 3-mile strip of Main Street in Poughkeepsie, New York.
I’ve been passionate about photography since the beginning of high school. From 2015 to 2017, I interned with Magnum photographer Bruce Gilden, who’s known for his powerful street photography, and, more recently, for his 2015 book, Face.
My relationship with Poughkeepsie started at the end of my junior year, while I was interning for Bruce, who lives about half an hour away from Poughkeepsie. Poughkeepsie is a small city with a population around 32,736. Approximately 19% live below the poverty line.
Recent years have brought a great deal of economic hardship to this lively, character-filled place. Some people attribute this to the downsizing of IBM’s local headquarters. Others say that fault lies with the Poughkeepsie Galleria Mall, or the additions to the highway system, both of which have de-emphasized the role of Main Street.
Some blame local colleges — Vassar, Marist, the Culinary Institute — for their lack of engagement with the community. In any case, Poughkeepsie is still a beautiful, resilient city with beautiful, interesting people. Lots to learn from them, no question about it.
I feel inspired by what the Martiniquan philosopher and writer Eduaord Glissant once said, that “I can change, through exchange”. This project is not only a document of my interactions with the people and places of Poughkeepsie, but also an attempt to connect with people, to hear their stories, and to make images that I then share with them.
My method of working is pretty simple: I carry my DSLR, a Canon 7D Mark II with an Olympus Art Lens (28mm but adjusted to around 38mm because my camera body is a crop-sensor). I walk along a three-mile strip of Main Street (at this point, I’ve been on hundreds of these walks) occasionally diverging to surrounding streets.
I always try to keep an open eye for anything that strikes me. Perhaps most importantly, I take the time to talk to people, to hear their stories, and to familiarize myself with an area. Poughkeepsie, because it’s not too big, has this village-like quality to it, where certain people seem to run in groups that always occupy the same street corners.
With this project, I’m interested in producing photo-symbols that give a sense of where I feel America is at right now. As someone who grew up in London and New York City, the idea of a Main Street conjured up all sorts of connotations of wholesomeness, prosperity, and Norman Rockwell illustrations.
In a lot of ways, this project is about reconciling what I imagined of Main Street with what I actually see.
About the author: Caleb Stein, born 1994, graduated from Vassar College in 2017 with a degree in art history. He has interned at Christie’s Auction House and for Magnum photographer Bruce Gilden (2015-2017). He continues to run Gilden’s Instagram and is currently in pre-production on a documentary on Gilden. His work has been featured in Hamburger Eyes, The Heavy Collective, LensCulture, and Creative Quarterly and has been exhibited in group shows in Portland and Los Angeles. He lives in Poughkeepsie, NY with his partner. You can find more of his work on his website and Instagram.
from PetaPixel https://petapixel.com/2017/11/09/hudson-3-mile-strip-main-street-poughkeepsie-ny/
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