Purity Hotel â€?Richmond, VA â€?1971 1971

Curator: Dennis Feldman captured this moment in Richmond, Virginia, back in 1971, calling it "Purity Hotel." There's such a stark, voyeuristic feel to it. What strikes you first? Editor: It's that bleak, lonely glow from the TV screen. Like some kind of warped halo hovering over the figure's head, promising a false sense of grace. Curator: Right. "Purity." The name itself becomes ironic. Think about the cultural memory of "purity" as a virtue. Juxtapose that with the transient, anonymous setting of a hotel. Editor: And that "Vacancy" sign propped up in the window—it's not just about the room, is it? It's about the person inside, their own vacant state of being. Curator: The window acts as a liminal space, an intermediary between the inside and outside world and also between states of being, capturing the human condition of loneliness in the modern world. A powerful statement about the American Dream. Editor: A dream deferred, perhaps. This image will linger.