Lee Bey: The Urban Observer

 (photos by Curtis Locke)

I stumbled across the work of photographer Curtis Locke a few weeks ago on the photosite flickr. Each photo is sharp essay on some aspect of Chicago's urban self. Taverns. Two-flats. Ghost signs. Everything is laid bare and revealed. And he clearly digs the South Side, so that makes him good in my book. Curtis "flickrs" under the name kneejerky. (He also writes a blog.)The Urban Observer tracked him down for a few questions. But first, check out some more of his pix:

Q: So Curtis...what subjects attract you as a photographer?

A: Representatives of "Old Chicago" (bricks, terra cotta,
water towers, alleys, urban patina); "MY Chicago", an
alternative, personal guide to the Second City that is not
included in the official "Welcome to Chicago" brochure,
places where "nature" and the "built environment"
intersect; all varieties of "signage", especially "ghost
signs" and the evidence of a previous life; vacant lots
symbolizing "emptiness",  "potential", and challenging the
concept of "nothingness"; the sense of transience as
manifested by decay and loss.   

Q:What stories do your images tell?

A: The beauty of the ordinary and  the idiosyncratic.  The
fleeting and enduring nature of an evolving metropolis.

Q: What turned you on to photography?

A: With an "undeclared" minor in photography, I fell in
love with the myth and gothic Rust Belt ruin that was
Cleveland back in the early 1980's, where I attended
college and studied political science. 

Q:Who inspired you as a photographer?