Abandoned Germany Photo Book

27th December 2023

Abandoned Germany photo book, photos taken and curated by Aurélien Villette.

Jonglez Publishing has a growing series of photographic coffee table books, featuring abandoned buildings throughout the world. A real armchair urbexer’s dream. From Abandoned Cinemas of the World, a lost period of the Golden Age reminding us of previous precious generations, to churches across Europe (Abandoned Churches), crumbling away, their congregations long dead or worshipping elsewhere. Abandoned Italy and Abandoned Spain capture an essence of each country that is fundamental to the individual culture and values.

I have been delighted to peruse Abandoned Germany because we spend a lot of time in the country. Although it would be hard to actually physically follow in the author’s footsteps (only an indication is given as to where the photo is taken), the overall sense of lives once lived within the edifices is hard to ignore. In this particular volume, some of the periods of German history are well captured. Military buildings, Ballhäuser, breweries, power stations and asylums form the core photographic oeuvre, with some featured hotels and manor houses to add a wider, historical context.

The legacy of buildings featured really does chart the history, focussing mainly on the 20th Century, when Germany saw a lot of military action in the two World Wars and demonstrating how Soviet influence prevailed in both art and architecture in the Eastern part of the country.

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Does the book feel representative of Germany? It covers about 75% of the German Länder, with a preponderance for buildings located in Saxony, Brandenburg and Saxony Anhalt, which were all part of the former GDR (which existed 1949-1990). Hence, I imagine, the Soviet ‘feel’ of many of the featured buildings – to wit angular concrete, functional structures and, mostly, images of interiors with a strong vanishing point. I enjoy seeing these block buildings through the lens of a camera, but perhaps I would have liked to see more buildings from the Gründerzeit, softened with some examples of Jugendstil – I am sure there must be plenty of buildings dotted around the country, just waiting to be captured before they fall into full decay? As it was, the choices featured felt overwhelmingly masculine in nature.

This is an intriguing book of collected photos that records buildings and detail that will soon be lost as the elements continue their journey of inevitable destruction.

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