[alert variation=”alert-info”]Publisher: Jonglez Guides
Formats: Hardcover
Purchase: Powell’s | Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble | iBooks[/alert]

This is a most unusual, very beautiful book that combines history, architecture, preservation and photography in a single volume. In Forbidden Places, photographer Sylvain Margaine and writer David Margaine have chosen twenty-six abandoned places from around the world, once beautiful but now neglected. They consider these our forgotten heritage, and looking at each of the photos, it is easy to understand why they chose their subjects.

“It raises awareness, draws the eye to the ephemeral beauty of these places, the fascinating aesthetics of abandonment.”

Most were once places of great beauty, wonderful architectural gems in their heydays, but were abandoned for economical or practical reasons. Some locations were scheduled for restoration but because of the high cost, faded into oblivion. Many are formerly glorious villas, castles or residences for royalty or high officials. Some are former public buildings like a power station, a hospital, a prison, a stock exchange and a swimming pool. The photographs include an entire Italian town, as well as three giant Russian helicopters stranded in Belgium which, due to disputed charges, were left behind to an uncertain fate. The text explaining each feature is brief but informative, and every photograph is also accompanied by a poem. This medium-sized book is a high-end production on heavy, glossy paper.

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