The small settlement of Pyramiden on the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard is actually frozen in time. A former mining outpost for the Soviet Union, industrial operations ceased in 1998, and residents relocated. It wasn’t till 2007 {that a} handful of latest inhabitants made the settlement residence.
As a result of Pyramiden was deserted in a chilly local weather, it stays impeccably preserved, with remnants of its once-thriving settlement nonetheless seen. French photographer Damien Aubin visited the Arctic area and documented the nonetheless, serene surroundings blanketed in snow. “The place has not been deserted. It has been left in suspension,” he says.
Pyramiden’s buildings and the objects inside are largely unchanged. Books sit open on college desks, and an unblemished statue of Lenin presides over a standard space. Exterior, a towering outside monument soars into the sky, the colourful crimson and blue paint a stark distinction to the in any other case white panorama.
“I {photograph} these environments at a distance, in a restrained, diffuse mild. There isn’t any occasion to explain, no narrative to unfold,” Aubin provides. “Throughout Pyramiden, Barentsburg and Longyearbyen, the identical situation seems:
areas formed by human intent, now not aligned with it.”
Aubin has compiled the pictures in a limited-edition guide slated for launch in September. You should buy a duplicate on his web site.
