Left Off the Fence Gallery, Still Holding History

Enslaved People’s Cabin at the Atlanta History Center

I recently submitted a small series to the M2R Fence Gallery sponsored by the Marietta Arts Council. The traveling outdoor exhibit features works of fine art and photography, and begins in Marietta, followed by Acworth, Austell, Kennesaw, Powder Springs, Town Center, and lastly, Smyrna.

These images weren’t selected, but they’re still meaningful to me, and honestly, they tell a story I want to share here.

Each place impressed me with its history, not in an abstract way, but in a way that let you stand inside and take in the essence of those who lived there.

The images reflect different chapters of Southern history. The first image was taken at the Atlanta History Center, inside the Enslaved People’s Cabin. Being inside, I felt a quiet sense of what life must’ve been like: the worn wood, the dim light, and the simple tools of daily life.

Being inside the rooms where people lived gets you thinking. It’s one thing to read about history. It’s another thing to be exactly in those spaces. You can imagine people passing through doorways, cooking, eating, sleeping, and where they sat on the front porch.

Cades Cove Structures

The story shifts to Cades Cove. While it looks peaceful today, it also carries a layered past. Settled in the early 1800s, European American families came looking for land in what’s now the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Life was hard for families who built cabins and barns by hand, cleared the land, and relied on each other to get through. Those structures reflect resilience, and the chance to own land and shape a future that wasn’t open to everyone.

Some settlers in Cades Cove enslaved African Americans. That part of the story is quieter, and matters in the history of the Cherokee people, who were forced out before these communities took root.

A Moment That Bridges Past and Present

Wood Cabin, Atlanta History Center

The final image at the Atlanta History Center shows a small wood cabin surrounded by greenery, and a young girl stands just outside, looking in. When I saw that split-second moment, it stopped me. Seeing the structure through her gaze, I found myself wondering what she was thinking. Curiosity maybe. Or just taking it in without words. The image, for me, is about observing our place in history.

This is the kind of work I’m drawn to, photographing places where history still feels present and where a single moment can hold so much of what came before.