«Naturalia» is a series where nature takes back its rights with a striking yet soothing beauty. In the heart of several buildings abandoned – or even fell into ruin -, it is a duality between the old and the wild that comes hit us with a contrast of greenery and concrete.
The Paris-based photographer Jonk discovered exploration of urban abandoned places more than 15 years ago, and it is by photographing subways, catacombs and other city’s hidden faces that he fell for these living paintings. «I realized the atmospheres’ intensity and the passage of time’ aesthetic: rust, cracked walls, flaking paint, broken windows and nature rebirthing create incredible scenes. For me, all this seems like infinite poetry, he says. In time, my interest focused on what appeared to be the strongest, the most original, in this vast subject of abandonment: the places taken back by nature. It is almost magical to see how it happens; reintegrating by broken windows or cracks, sites built by humans then abandoned become nature property again.»
«Naturalia» also became a book published by Carpet Bombing Culture gathering several hundred photos taken by the photographer all around the world on the subject. Follow Jonk on his Instagram account.
