On a winter day in 2013 I crossed the Hudson River, drove into Troy and fell in love. As I made my way across the Green Island Bridge, I felt as if I was entering a new world.

Drinking a glass of wine at the Southend Tavern, I told myself I would return to Troy the following weekend. For the next ten years I could not stop myself from returning with my camera on a regular basis.

Troy is an old industrial town, with factories that made bricks, iron and shirt collars (Troy is know as “The Collar City”). Some of the factories are still functional, but many have long since shut down.

Part of the magic of Troy is that the graffiti covered factories are mixed in with grand houses built by the wealthy families that built the factories in the 19th century. More recently, a number of young families have moved to Troy, restoring homes and becoming a part of the community. Many of these reconstructed houses retain the original Troy brick and colorful Tiffany windows visible from the neighborhood streets.

People spend hot summer days out on their stoops socializing and watching the world go by. When I photographed a woman sitting on a beach chair in front of her two-story home it reminded me of the neighborhood in Brooklyn where I grew up. Women in Brighton did the same thing. They sat outside gossiping, sipping iced tea and watching children playing and riding their bicycles.

Many of the people I photographed are the main reason I fell in love with Troy. The portraits in this project are not just of brief acquaintances, rather they are of people who became an important part of my life. To this day, every time I cross that bridge, I feel the I am coming home again.

Photography with Hasselblad medium format camera. Size for exhibition is 24"X24".