PROJECT WEBSITE : http://www.ellisislandghosts.com/
It's hard to imagine a place that says more about the American experience than Ellis Island. For twelve million people, Ellis Island was the doorway to a new life. The hopes and dreams of several generations of immigrants began and sometimes ended there, and there are few American families who can't trace their heritage back to someone whose first footsteps on American soil happened at Ellis Island. For five years, renowned photographer Stephen Wilkes had free reign of the island's hospital complex. Neglected for nearly fifty years, the buildings were in an extreme state of disrepair: lead paint peeled from the ceilings and walls, vines and trees grew through the floorboards of once cramped wards. In these long-abandoned spaces, Wilkes discovered an unyielding solitude, yet also found undeniable evidence of life, not only in the implicit remembrances of the people who resided there, but in the radiant, beckoning light in which these scenes were captured.
http://www.michenermuseum.org/exhibits/ellis.php
Magical Lighting of Ellis Island
Stephen Wilkes discusses the importance of light in his photographs
of this place where millions of immigrants once passed through.
Ellis Island's Dark Underbelly in Pictures
Stephen Wilkes discusses the years he spent taking pictures of Ellis Island. Why are some of his favorite images from the island's South Side, home of the hospital where sick immigrants were treated? Find out more.
Go behind the scenes at Ellis Island with photographer Stephen Wilkes, who spent years
documenting the place. He talks about his favorite images of the Ellis Island experience.
Michener Art Museum's Senior Curator, Brian Peterson, speaks about the
exhibition, Ellis Island: Ghosts of Freedom. (2010)
History of Ellis Island's Great Hall
The Great Hall was the large waiting room of Ellis Island. Immigrants waited here for their interviews with legal inspectors after finishing their medical exams. At best, the entire process through Ellis Island took three to five hours. But sometimes problems came up, like family members waiting for a relative to be treated in the hospital ward. Some families stayed for days on Ellis Island, others for weeks, and still others for months.
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