Kala Barba-CourtIt was the haunting geometry of abandoned military bunkers that caught the eye of photographer Jonathan Andrew. Scattered throughout the Dutch landscape, he was fascinated by their unique shapes born out of pure functionality. After photographing a few of them he started seeking out others during his free time, compiling them in a compelling, emotional series titled World War 2 Bunkers.
The project has taken him through locations in France, the Netherlands, Scotland and Belgium, where these persisting reminders of a turbulent past still stand. Some of them bear marks of graffiti; others, converted into livestock barns by local farmers. The ones located near the sea are being used as diving platforms.
Andrew shoots the bunkers at dusk and at night, when he is no longer reliant on specific weather or lighting conditions. “By lighting them with a flash I could really pick out the shape and 3D forms of the structures,” he explains. “After shooting the first four bunkers with this technique, I realised that the lighting seemed to fit the subject matter very well, almost as if they are lit by a large searchlight. It seems to add to the already haunting atmosphere that the structures have.”
More on Jonathan Andrew’s website.
Type 622 Personnel Bunker, Quiberville Plage, France
Gun site for 5cm tank gun, in the background a 630 Embrasured MG emplacement with armour plating. Wissant, Pas de Calais, France
Cramond Island WW2 submarine defense boom.
612 Embrasured Emplacement for Assault guns, Le Hourdel, Somme, France
Military Casemate Type 623, West of Koudekerke, The Netherlands
Type 688 Casemate for 17cm gun. Etaples, Pas de Calais, France
Fire Control Post for Medium and Heavy Batteries. Heerenduin, Ijmuiden, The Netherlands
Dutch Casemate, Kornwerderzand, Friesland, The Netherlands
Fire Control Post, Zuydcoote, Plage l’Ouest de Zuydcoote, France
Type L483 transmitter bunker, Spaandam
134 Ammunition Bunker, Lissewege, Belgium
Type V143 Mammut Radar Antenne, Waringzelle, Nord Pas de Calais
Anti Tank Wall and block 22, Ouvrage Hackenberg. Part of the Maginot Line
Casemate d’artillerie de Windstein, part of the Maginot Line
Images © Jonathan Andrew / with permission