the Damen silos

The Damen silos have always held a place of wonder and curiosity for me. I would see it almost every day on my way to school, on my way to my parents’ Chinese take out restaurant in the western suburbs of Chicago, or on my way anywhere out of the South Side heading north on I55. Within the silos are empty grain elevators and no shortage of broken down equipment. Before a security guard was posted there, graffiti artists, drifters, urban explorers, people escaping something could be found occupying the various nooks, crannies, crevices, and burrows. The space is dilapidated and grotesque, abandoned, but frequented. It’s a place with it’s own mythology of urban abandonment. Sometimes, you’ll meet the squatter tenants who live in the tunnels who’ll offer you hummus. Sometimes, you’ll meet taggers or graffiti artists leaving their mark. Sometimes, you’ll meet explorers out on a date. Sometimes, you’ll spend your time avoiding the security guard. Sometimes, you’ll be alone. The silos are always evolving. I’m not sure if I’m looking for something there or if I’m just documenting it to remember it. I’m drawn to it, probably mostly because they’ve become part of the background of my every day and because my memory is at best unreliable, I feel the need to keep photos of it.