Do you have a love of exploring abandoned locations? Dutch photographer Niki Feijen sure does! He visited 8 different countries in a year, in search of abandoned buildings that nature has since claimed. He uses Google Earth to search for locations that have been abandoned, and that is how he decides where he is going to go next. He does his research before visiting the locations to ensure it’s not a wasted trip. Feijen released his first self-published book of photographs titled Disciple of Decay last year. He is set to release his new book titled Frozen, which will contain over 150 pages of photographs featuring abandoned mansions, mental institutions, and churches all from around the world!
Niki Feijen has explored many mansions and homes that have been abandoned, taking pictures in the most intimate of rooms.
He has traveled the world to find the best locations for photographs. I am very happy that he did!
These locations are absolutely beautiful. I can only image what they looked like in all their glory while being used.
Some of Niki Feijen’s favorite places to take photographs are religious spaces such as churches and chapels.
It’s hard to believe that these places were just abandoned, and nobody seemed to care.
How cool is this old movie theater with the chairs right where they left them! And nature is definitely beginning to swallow this place whole, with the trees coming through the window.
He has visited France, Italy, and many other locations throughout Europe trying to find the best of the best in urban exploration.
This ballroom would have been absolutely gorgeous before it was abandoned.
Feijen said, “If I would fall through a floor and get seriously injured, I would not be able to alert anybody.” This is a very dangerous hobby as these places are not always structurally sound.
Some of his favorite places to shoot other than churches and chapels are ghost towns, insane asylums, and castles.
His favorite place that he visited to date though is an abandoned hotel in Germany. The hotel had caught on fire a few years before he visited, which left it wide open for the elements. He found a bed covered with moss, but in another room in the hotel the fire had destroyed everything including a light fixture that had melted. He said it reminded him of a Tim Burton movie.
His fascination with abandoned buildings started when he was just a child. There was an abandoned home not far from where he was growing up. He said, “I passed it a zillion times until finally I had the guts to have a peek inside. The adrenaline, the excitement. It was amazing.”
While traveling, he came across this abandoned water park, where the pool had been drained and is now being overrun by vegetation.
These slides are amazing looking! It’s crazy how nature has taken back what once belonged to it.
He came across this abandoned amusement park that has not been used for many years.
It is kind of hard to see all of this amazing architecture go to waste. Even though nature has slowly made its way in, you can tell how beautiful these buildings were before.
This is believed to be an abandoned jail or possibly a mental institution. Feijen was asked if he has ever encountered anything of the paranormal. But he said he is a ‘down to earth’ guy who doesn’t really believe in that kind of stuff.
In buildings like this, it looks like the inhabitants just left with every intention on coming back. But here lies the building years later, with nobody inside.
I wonder what all of these staircases are connected too. Just looking at them gives you a slightly dizzy feeling.
This hotel room has been completely destroyed. Not by rockstars or guests, but by nature and the elements.
The towels are still in place in this eerie picture. Once again it looks like the residents left with the intention of coming back. I wonder what happened.
Check out this abandoned dairy farm, known as Red Dress Manor:
More info: Niki Feijen
These pictures are breathtaking, beautiful, and slightly creepy at the same time. I’m amazed that some people just up and left, or maybe there is a lot more to the story that will never be told. I know one thing. I’m very glad that Niki Feijen has chosen this as his hobby and profession, so he could share these pictures with the world.