The year was 1992. It was a time of transitions, farewells and new beginnings. The German Democratic Republic was gone, as was the Soviet presence that had dominated people's lives in many areas of East Germany for decades. Soldiers across the nation packed their bags to depart barracks and previous secret and unknown military installations. One such area was the airfield in the town of my childhood, an area that for many represented Soviet power, the airfield of the 126th Fighter Division of the 16th Air Army.
I can remember the tales, the countless tales, the speculation about their enormous hangars, underground bunkers and fighter jets taking off and cutting through the skies above my childhood town. For the people that lived beyond the exclusionary fence of this airfield, it was a mystifying place; a view behind barbed wire was rare but it was understood nonetheless. A military town with a population of about 10,000 that came and went as they pleased. A strange but unique military world that suddenly disappeared, abruptly, and almost overnight.
The withdrawal of the Soviet troops in 1992 not only concluded a military era but also initiated a slow but irreversible transition: decay. What was once home to a bustling military life was now left to decay and the passage of time. Just recently I returned to this airfield, and the photographs I brought back tell a story of the "decay" that has permeated this area over decades.
The enormous concrete buildings that once held aircraft or other equipment or who served as storage buildings survive, but are in fractured form. The silence is almost deafening, only broken by the occasional stiff gust of air whistling through the hollow corridors.
It is amazing to see how nature has also found ways to take over. Grass and small trees now sprout from the roofs of the buried bunkers, as if trying to heal signs of the past. The pathways, which were once smooth concrete runways, have huge cracks, with patches of grass sprouting through the seams. You can sometimes see artifacts, such as shards of wood or rusty pieces of metal, that show evidence of their former life. Small things from a day past, that still exist quietly in their surroundings, slowly being engulfed by moss and dirt.
The location has a mournful beauty. It is decay that is the primary focus of decay, but it also marks the importance of history. A location that once represented military capability, is now an observer of change. The lofty hide in trees invites us to realize that this space is now also used for hunting, and the wind turbines turning silently in the distance. Suggest that even decay is finding new worthy applications to overcome landscapes
This section of the former airfield is much more than a collection of redundant buildings. It, in part, is a monument to decay: comforting us that change happens so quickly and that Nature very quickly reclaims space that is abandoned in favour of next best, temporary use in a ever-changing world. A location that invites contemplation, with rusted detritus stories of a past abruptly severed from history.
This is my entry for the The Friendlymoose Photocontest with the Topic "Decay". #FPC
Main initiator who motivated me to participate in this photo contest is @cryptozeug. Check out his post on "Decay." It's worth it!🙃✌️
