Missouri native J Bennett Fitts traveled over 20,000 miles, weaving his way across the American South, to capture and catalog the abandoned motel swimming pools comprising his series, No Life Guard On Duty. Whether in the deserts of Arizona or the seaside town of Panama City, Florida, the images serve as a testament to poetry of ruins, their poignancy perhaps heightened due to current economic circumstances. See more.
The project preserves an important slice of Americana, one that might disappear under the construction of a future building boom. The photographer’s skill with light enhances the melancholy of these abandoned landscapes, and clues us in as to why these motels were built where they were in the first place.
Images by J Bennett Fitts via Co.DESIGN