Sunday, March 5, 2017

Abandoned places: An internet favorite

People are fascinated with abandoned places. Not just ancient ruins like Machu Picchu, Chichen Itza and Angkor Wat. But modern abandoned places, such as closed shopping malls, shuttered amusement parks and forgotten Olympic venues.
Some photographers specialize in photographing such modern abandoned places. They include Seph Lawless, Matthew Christopher and Reginald Van de Velde.
One website, DeadMalls.com, documents abandoned shopping malls across the U.S.
Another website, Chicago’s Extinct Businesses, focuses just on the Second City.
Why the interest in abandoned modern places? It’s likely a combination of nostalgia and a fascination with how large investments in properties can fail and turn into post-apocalyptic landscapes.

Related articles:

Rio’s Olympic Venues Look Like Hell Just Six Months After the Games (Gizmodo; Feb. 13, 2017)

From faded Ferris wheels to rusting roller-coasters: Inside Japan’s eerie abandoned amusement parks (Daily Mail; March 4, 2017)

Dying shopping malls are wreaking havoc on suburban America. (Business Insider; March 5, 2017)

Photo: Labelscar for a Barnes & Noble Booksellers store in Reston, Va., in July 2013. It’s now a Container Store. (Patrick Seitz photo)

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