I would guess that many people are like me and share an enchantment with modern decay. Old roads or abandoned buildings, for example, offer a never-ending fascination with frozen man-made objects losing their battle with nature.
For me, these decaying objects are mysterious and chilling. They can provoke feelings of both nostalgia and remorse. I experienced these reactions today while riding my bicycle in the hills above my home town of Jugenheim. The road in question has been closed to traffic for only a year or two but it is already a reminder that no matter how many objects we produce, consume and discard, these objects will, in many cases, outlive us and the purpose to which we once put them.
I find it fascinating to see how an abandoned road can look so old so quickly. Until recently, people were driving or riding up this road and living day-to-day lives in its spaces. And yet, the stage on which those people once experienced feelings and enjoyed relationships, is dying. Nonetheless, the stage itself can stimulate the creative spirit to imagine a little piece of history that cannot be found elsewhere. Somehow, the imagination can help us step into a time capsule. I mean by this that abandoned places can offer a way to connect with yesteryear. They often evoke a sense of mystery and provoke curiosity regarding history, and they stimulate the imagination about what might have occurred there. They also provide a glimpse into the past and the ravages of the passage of time. Abandoned places can serve as a reminder of the impermanence of humans and human creations but they are also a reminder of the resilience of nature, of the inevitability of decay and, in return, they leave us with a sense of nostalgia or melancholy.
For the writer, these abandoned places can stimulate the creative force. What mystery do these places hold? What stories could these abandoned places tell us? Could the places tell us stories of death, of murder or could they tell of love and happiness? Abandoned places of ghosts are, perhaps, the perfect places to set something new…
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