Arts and Entertainment

Borland Gallery hosts first exhibition, features photography by senior

University Park, Pa. -- The Borland Gallery is hosting its first exhibition, "Losing Culture," featuring photography by Emily Rebert, who will graduate in May with a B.F.A. in photography. The exhibition is open 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, through the beginning of March. Rebert's photographs show historic buildings that have fallen into disrepair and, could eventually be an "irreplaceable loss to society."

Rebert's interest in historic buildings stems from a childhood spent growing up in old houses with a history, including a home whose basement housed George Washington and his soldiers during the Revolutionary War. "Watching an old home deteriorate is like watching our culture and heritage crumble," says Rebert, a native of Spring Grove, outside York, Pa. " Because I grew up in houses with historical backgrounds, with a family with a strong dedication to their roots, I naturally feel for these abandoned memories."

After graduation, Rebert plans to pursue a career in architectural photography, continuing to photograph old houses and outbuildings, cemeteries and historic sites to retell their stories of loss, sadness and decay. She hopes her photos will inspire others to preserve and restore old houses and buildings. "Currently our culture is sacrificing quality for quantity," Rebert says. "I question why we are building new, less structurally sound houses, when we could simply preserve what we already have."
 

Last Updated March 19, 2009

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