Urbex: discovering abandoned places across France and Europe

What is urbex?

Urbex, short for "urban exploration", is a practice that is attracting more and more people. It consists of visiting places that have been abandoned by man. Disused factories, abandoned mansions, forgotten amusement parks, the places can be very varied and are usually hidden in remote areas with few tourists.

The story of an enthusiast

The editors of GEO met Timothy Hannem, author of the books Urbex France and Urbex Europe published by Arthaud. For this urban exploration enthusiast, it all started when he was a child thanks to cult films such as The Goonies or Stand by Me. " I wanted to go on an adventure to experience the emotions of these two films," he confides. As a child and then as a teenager, he visited many places and realised that they were more than just abandoned houses and buildings. Through his studies, he became interested in the historical and architectural aspects. Since then, he has created a website, Glauque-Land, where he relates all his visits as well as the stories of the places.

An illegal and dangerous practice

Although urbex is gaining popularity, it is important to remember that it is an illegal practice. The abandoned places visited are most often private properties where it is forbidden to enter without authorisation. This type of exploration is also not without danger, reminds Timothy Hannem. " If it's an old manor house that's been abandoned for 80 years, you could very well fall through a floor or have a ceiling collapse on your head," he says. That's why any exploration needs to be well prepared and equipped.

The rules of respectful urbex

In addition to being well equipped and aware of the danger, it is important to respect two rules to keep the practice respectful. On the one hand, not to divulge the location of the places visited, in particular to avoid attracting ill-intentioned visitors, explains Timothy Hannem. And secondly, to leave the places as they are, in other words, not to break anything, touch anything or take anything away. "The idea is to really come and simply bring back souvenirs to show the place," explains the enthusiast. "That's what I'm trying to do, anyway.

Exploring corners where you would never have gone

For his two books, Timothy Hannem went to regions in France and Europe where he would never have gone. Urbex is also about visiting places that are sometimes impossible to see in normal circumstances, such as " magnificent castles, huge factories or even prisons ", explains the adventurer. " That's what I like about it, going off into the unknown, not really knowing what you're going to find when you push open a door or walk three kilometres through the forest to visit a place that might not be there or that is in ruins.

Welcome to the Domaine des trois colonnes

Among Timothy's favourite places is the Three Columns Estate, an English manor house he discovered in 2011. Since then, the explorer has been visiting it regularly to see how it has changed over the seasons. "It's a place that is completely out of the ordinary," he says. During one of his last visits, he even made some new discoveries: " I found the pages of a book torn out of the back of the attic, knowing that this place was looted during the Second World War, it has been abandoned for 70 years, for me it's like archaeology.

Reviving the memory of places that are doomed to disappear

On each of his visits, Timothy Hannem takes an interest in both the place itself and its history. They conduct advanced research to find out more, but sometimes it is the history itself that comes to meet him. This is what happened with a place he calls the Orphanage with No Future above. After reporting on his visit and publishing his photos on his website, he was contacted by former residents of the institution. They ended up accompanying him on a guided tour of the facility. " This story allowed me to take a step back and realise the importance of making complete and respectful accounts to somehow keep alive the memory of these places that sometimes exist nowhere else and are doomed to disappear," he explains.

Showing places as they are

On his website Glauque-Land, Timothy Hannem reports on his visits and also publishes his photos, which he makes a point of taking in a way that is neither creepy nor frightening, but rather sober and simple, to present the places as they are. " The photos show how we look at a place. Even if it's ugly, damaged or broken, it doesn't matter. I'm just interested in getting people to think 'this is a crazy place'," he explains. " It's also so that people can make it their own somewhere .

Explorers and designers

Urbex is not the only passion of the Frenchman, who is also a cartoonist. And as can be seen in the various books he has written and on his blog A cup of Tim, it is not unusual for his two passions to meet. The illustration above accompanies the story of one of the visits in the book Urbex Europe, to 'Villagio Fantasma', an abandoned amusement park in Italy.