In the early 1980's Jack Phelan, a self proclaimed ''fight fan", installed a boxing gym on the third floor of his furniture store in downtown Joliet, Illinois. The gym is approximately 5,000 square feet (big enough for two full sized boxing rings) and saw the likes of area fighters such as "Jumbo" Floyd Cummings, a heavyweight fighter who lost a Pro fight to Renaldo Snipes by decision; Bucky Moreno, an area Golden Glove (amateur) boxer; and 2001 Golden Glove champion Carrie Marche. It is now home to the Joliet Boxing Team a non-profit group, which trains about 15-25 kids for fights and Golden Glove competitions. Carrie Marche is now the team’s pro-bono trainer.
The heavyweight boxing championships were Jack's passion for boxing. His favorite heavyweights to watch were Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier and George Foreman. These amazing 15 round fights captivated Jack and his longing to be a part of it moved him to create Jack's Gym. Jack also enjoyed watching welterweight champion Sugar Ray Leonard; middleweight champion "Marvelous" Marvin Hagler; junior welterweight champion Aaron "The Hawk" Prior; featherweight champion Alexis Argello also known as "El Flaco Explosivo" (The Explosive Thin Man); and Tommy Hearns, the first boxer to win championships in six different weights.
A virtual unknown, Jack's Gym is one of Joliet's hidden jewels. It is a part of Joliet's rich history of family owned and run businesses. Jack also had a deep love of his community; consequently the gym was a way for Jack to combine these two passions. It stands now as evidence of those who have lived and dreamed in its space. Jack Phelan was a friend and I enjoyed listening to his stories about his days in the U.S. Army Air Corps and his love of boxing. It was my conversations with Jack that prompted me to make a series of photographs of his gym to preserve Jack's passion for boxing and to further understand what it was that intrigued him.
The time spent in the gym afforded me the opportunity to feel the energy of the space and those who've left their mark here. The hand-made sign denoting "Boxing Gym Rules" duct taped to the wall, the hand-painted "House of Pain" banner on the gym floor, the rough used texture of the speed bag, and the thermometer with "chilly", "not bad", "hot" and "I'm Dead" denoting the temperature of the gym give the viewer the occasion to see these marks. I am intrigued by the mark we as man leave behind as we move beyond this worldly stage of our spiritual selves. The story told by this evidence leaves behind all the information the viewer needs to know without even a written word or captions. This is the story of the man, Jack, with a passion for the "sweet science".
