From Despair

by Dennis Lundell

Title

From Despair

Artist

Dennis Lundell

Medium

Digital Art - Digital Art / Photograpy

Description

When Germany was divided into East and West during the period between 1945 and 1989 it was physically separated by a series of high fences running 1,393 km from the northern end to the southern end of the country. Built by East Germany, the German Democratic Republic, its primary purpose was to keep people from defecting to the West.

It consisted mainly of a pair of 4m high, expanded metal fences topped with barbed wire and separated by 500 to 1,000 meters. The space in between was booby-trapped with landmines and heavily guarded. Observation towers with powerful searchlights were constructed at regular intervals.

I was lucky enough to visit an area of the border twice, once a few years before the reunification of East and West (1986, I think) and once a few years after (1993). This was near the city of Fulda. The first time, of course, the border was up and fully functional. One could see it only from a significant distance. The second time was far different. The observation towers were badly vandalized and quite accessible from the road. Fences were partially torn down and one could walk around the area, although there were signs that warned of landmines in the area that might have been missed when they were collected earlier.

This is a view from inside an observation tower on the western side looking through the shattered window across the area between the fences, back toward East Germany. One can see in the distance another observation tower, a smaller, two-man version positioned to allow the guards to shoot anyone crossing the zone and trying to escape. On the far side of that tower is what remains of the far side fence, although it cannot be seen from this distance. It is a somber reminder of the price some will pay for freedom.

Featured in groups:
Fine Art America Based Masters Advocacy
Fine Art America Professionals
The Artists Group
Photographic Camera Art
ABC Group

Uploaded

May 26th, 2020

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