JONATHAN CHERRY: What got you started with photography?

ROB DOBI: I went to school in Providence RI from 1999-2003 and in that time there was a vast amount of abandoned factories downtown. My friends and I would sneak in and out of them and I decided someone needed to document them. At the time I was shooting with a digital camera with a max resolution of 640 x 480 and stored images on a floppy disk. Since then my gear has been upgraded a bit.

JC: Any emerging artists inspiring you at the mo?

RD: Honestly, I don’t really pay attention to other photographers. I have a lot of friends that tag along with me while I shoot who also shoot the same subjects, but I try not to be influenced by their work. I’ve always tried to do my own thing and not let what my contemporaries are doing sway me in one direction or another.

JC: Whats your current project all about?

RD: My New England Ruins project is all about documenting sites across the northeast that are no longer in use. I have been documenting these sites for the past 12 years and hope to show people what lies inside these structures that most consider eyesores. The project is constantly ongoing as the industrial and institutional landscape around us is constantly changing.

JC: Where are you currently living and how is it shaping you?

RD: I currently live in Bridgeport CT and while it doesn’t shape me like it used to, there are still some gems to be found. Bridgeport was once a huge industrial city but most of those jobs have come and gone. A few years ago some of these factories remained, but one by one they are vanishing much like the jobs did.

JC: One piece of advice to recent photography graduates?

RD: Afraid I have none, I went to school for illustration and not photography. This is just a hobby / thrill for me.

JC: Any big plans for 2012?

RD: Nothing concrete, just to continue sneaking around and discovering things most people don’t know exist. 

JC: Favourite tree?

RD: Any tree that produces apples.