Christopher Payne at Benrubi Gallery

Toothbrushes hang in neat rows, labeled with the names of patients at a now-closed psychiatric hospital in Poughkeepsie in this arresting photograph by Christopher Payne. Payne traveled to hospitals around the country over several years, creating a moving document of life in a bygone era. (At Chelsea’s Benrubi Gallery through March 26th).

Christopher Payne, Patient Toothbrushes, Hudson River State Hospital, Poughkeepsie, New York, digital chromogenic print, 20 x 30 inches, 2005.
Christopher Payne, Patient Toothbrushes, Hudson River State Hospital, Poughkeepsie, New York, digital chromogenic print, 20 x 30 inches, 2005.