A photographic exhibit of Virginia's "lost communities" will be displayed at the newly opened O. Winston Link Museum through February. Faculty and students at Virginia Tech's Community Design Assistance Center (CDAC) in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies have been working on this project since 2000, traveling across the state to study, research, and compile information on once thriving coal, lumber, or fishing communities that are now mere remnants of structures, or are existing small downtown areas less prosperous than they once were. The project findings will culminate in a photographic history book available to those interested in traveling, exploring, studying, designing, and living in the commonwealth.

CDAC Director Elizabeth Gilboy says the exhibit provides a sense of how several small Virginia communities began, prospered, and declined, not unlike the O. Winston Link photographs that captured and portrayed some of the heritage and history of Virginia communities. "They both portray a nostalgic sense of time and place that serve as reminders, or memories, of our past."

No admission is required to view the CDAC photographic exhibit. The museum's grand opening is scheduled for Jan. 10, 2004. Full normal admission to the museum will be $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, and $3 for children. Hours will be Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.

For more information about the "lost communities" exhibit or the future publication, contact CDAC at (540) 231-5644, or email CDAC Director Elizabeth Gilboy at egilboy@vt.edu. Funding for the exhibit was provided by the Community Design Assistance Center at Virginia Tech, the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, and the Graham Foundation.

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