Documenting abandonment

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to document how a former agricultural landscape becomes understood as untouched nature.

I will focus on a rural area that became gradually abandoned after the political turmoil of 1940s. Political, economic and cultural changes lead to marginal areas being left behind. Gradually agricultural activities ceased, buildings fell apart, and nature took over. Memories of people live a little longer, but even these are withering out after 70 or more years. At the same time forest that has been grown on these former fields are increasingly referred to as pristine or untouched nature by younger generations. Apparently, after some time the landscape becomes illegible.

I will illustrate these issues through a case study that we have documented over the recent decades (the first round was published in Palang, Paal 2002) using maps, field observations and interviews and discuss them through the lenses of a) time breaks in landscapes (Palang et al 2022) and b) climax thinking. The first gives a glimpse into how to integrate the past of the landscape into the present; the second contributes to the discussion whether landscapes could be “ready”.

Palang, H. A. Zarina, A. Printsmann 2022: Making sense of breaks in landscape change Landscape Ecology, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-022-01492-y

Palang, H., P. Paal 2002: Places Gained and Lost. V. Sarapik, K. Tüür, M. Laanemets (eds) Koht ja Paik II Place and Location. Eesti Kunstiakadeemia Toimetised, pp 93-11