photographer michael schwan’s mission is to explore ‘lost places’ across europe — he describes himself as part of the group of urban explorers. he is curious about what’s hidden behind the closed door, and this is the reason he started his series titled ‘the beauty of decay’.

the beauty of decay photo series depicts long-forgotten european interiors, by michael schwan
staircase in an abandoned courthouse in germany

 

 

whether furnished villas in portugal or vacant magnificent castles in polandschwan makes a perfect picture of the scenery accompanied by long-forgotten pieces of past, such as broken pianos, which, by the way, we have already seen in the work shot by romain thiery. the photographer invites the observers to accompany him on a journey into the past, places that no one had seen for a long time, places which step by step are taken by nature.

the beauty of decay photo series depicts long-forgotten european interiors, by michael schwan
banquet hall in an abandoned castle in poland

 

the beauty of decay photo series depicts long-forgotten european interiors, by michael schwan
banquet hall in an abandoned castle in germany

 

the beauty of decay photo series depicts long-forgotten european interiors, by michael schwan
ballroom in an abandoned hotel in Germany

 

the beauty of decay photo series depicts long-forgotten european interiors, by michael schwan
projector in an abandoned theater in belgium

 

michael schwan designboom
piano and staircase in an abandoned castle in france

 

the beauty of decay photo series depicts long-forgotten european interiors, by michael schwan
a magnificent ballroom in a deserted castle in poland

 

the beauty of decay photo series depicts long-forgotten european interiors, by michael schwan
entrance to an abandoned 5-star hotel in portugal

 

michael schwan designboom
reading room with baroque armchairs in an abandoned mansion in france

 

the beauty of decay photo series depicts long-forgotten european interiors, by michael schwan
the abandoned exchanges in antwerp

 

michael schwan designboom
staircase in an abandoned castle in poland

 

michael schwan designboom
winter garden with piano inana abandoned castle in poland

 

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

 

edited by: maria erman | designboom