We always like to see Budapest-related content on popular, trendsetting, visually strong websites, especially if not in the form of subjective lists or often-repeated subjects. PetaPixel has been one of the most-read lifestyle sites dealing with photography since 2009, and young Dutch photographer Roman Robroek, in addition to having his own blog, is also a regular contributor to the website.
His most recent article is about the Kelenföld Power Plant. The photographer had previously been to the semi-operating, semi-abandoned complex, but his most recent photos show a much more natural, realistic picture, and are made with less processing.
In addition to capturing the outside of the power plant, he was most interested in the Art Deco control room, designed by architects Kálmán Reichl and Virgil Borbíró around 1927, and shut down in 2005. The room with a huge glass ceiling is often used in films and music videos; most recently, it was featured in the movie Spy, shot in Budapest. The Kelenföld Power Plant is an exciting and fascinating photo subject, since it is protected by law from ever being torn down, and even though this also means that it’s not being restored, it is far less run-down than Robroek’s other photo subjects.
Let’s hope that during Robroek’s next trip to Budapest he’ll find even more interesting and captivating urbex (“urban exploration”, the exploration of manmade structures, usually abandoned ruins) subjects, like the former National Mental Institute of Lipótmező (article in Hungarian), the hostel of the National Council of Trade Unions at Rózsadomb (article in Hungarian), the abandoned hotels of Római Part, or Nagyvásártelep.
Roman Robroek Web PetaPixel
