If you’ve ever been curious about some of the most well-known spooky and abandoned places in Ohio -- but don't want to visit them -- a new exhibit provides a glimpse of places like the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield, Franklin Castle, and the House of Wills Funeral Home in Cleveland.
Just in time for Halloween, The Prama Gallery in Parma is hosting “Images of Haunted Ohio,” with work from about a dozen photographers. Gallery owner Sean Mabin grew up here, and says the idea came to him after a trip to the abandoned Mansfield reformatory, which offers Halloween-themed tours.
“We all have done the urban exploration. All of us are interested in that kind of thing as well as the spooky factor. Growing up in a Rust Belt town, you grow an appreciation for urban decay. And that comes out in a lot of the work that we do.”
Mabin says the photos go beyond just images of decaying walls.
“We’re not just looking at it from a documentation viewpoint. We’re also looking at the aesthetic and different kind of things like the texture that the decaying walls create and what kind of emotions that they bring about. So it’s not just your normal documentation show.”
Many of the photographers in the show also participate in the Cleveland Photo Fest, which provides programming and outreach for photographers throughout the region.
The exhibit is free and runs through November 22.
