Dave Vescio

I photograph rust, debris, and abandoned Route 66 vehicles. Corroded surfaces reveal faces and spirits, transforming discarded materials into encounters with presence. Works are printed on archival aluminum and museum-grade acrylic, with additional pieces available on Moab metallic paper. My practice, which I call Spiritography, explores the metaphysical relationship between matter, memory, and energy through the medium of photography. Industrial decay — primarily rusted steel and weathered paint — becomes a threshold where hidden forms rise into view. These are not digital constructions. The images are discovered, not designed. I may adjust tone and contrast, but the essence is already there, inscribed by time and elemental force. Within this body of work, hidden presences appear across different surfaces of industrial decay. In urban debris such as dumpsters, signage, and asphalt, faces and eyes emerge from overlooked fragments, suggesting watchers embedded in ruin and residue. Along Historic Route 66, abandoned vehicles become industrial fossils charged with residual energy. Once powered by human will, these machines now act as spirit-carriers, transformed by decay into vessels of memory and presence. Ultimately, my work invites viewers to look again at what is overlooked. In ruin and residue, there are presences waiting to be seen.