Abandoned architecture: Exploring Italy’s deserted building sites | CNN
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Photographer Amélie Labourdette shoots Italy’s abandoned building sites
For her "Empire of Dust" series, French photographer Amélie Labourdette's spent a month traveling across Italy documenting the country's abandoned building sites.
Courtesy Amélie Labourdette
Many look as though their building crews and cranes stepped off site only yesterday; others as though they were abandoned decades ago.
Courtesy Amélie Labourdette
Labourdette photographed unfinished buildings, as well as roads and bridges.
Courtesy Amélie Labourdette
"The list of incomplete constructions littering the Italian landscape is remarkable," Labourdette says. "They seem to be in competition with ancient ruins [like] the Colosseum or the Roman Forum."
Courtesy Amélie Labourdette
"Incompletion is the most important architectural style in Italy and it's key to interpreting the architecture of the public sector since WWII. It's also an excellent metaphor for bad management of public affairs and embezzlement of public money," she adds.
Courtesy Amélie Labourdette
Many of the silhouettes are reminiscent of minimalist sculptures from the 1960s.
Courtesy Amélie Labourdette
Labourdette shot the photos at dawn or dusk, when "the atmosphere seems to bring out the atemporality of the landscape."
!["The list of incomplete constructions littering the Italian landscape is remarkable," Labourdette says. "They seem to be in competition with ancient ruins [like] the Colosseum or the Roman Forum."](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/160718153757-italys-abandoned-building-sites-1.jpg?q=w_1251,h_1068,x_0,y_0,c_fill/h_447)
