Looking for something?

Tap outside or press close

InspirationPhotography

System of Absurdity: Photographer explores the horrors of a Soviet nuclear bunker

In his ongoing project System of Absurdity, British photographer Barry Falk explores the impact of the Second World War and the subsequent Soviet Occupation on the Baltic States between 1944 and 1991.

Written By:
Via submission. All images courtesy of Barry Falk

Via submission. All images courtesy of Barry Falk

For this particular series, he visited a former Soviet nuclear telecommunications bunker, set just outside Nemencine and now recreated as a theatrical drama about the Soviet Occupation.

During an insightful tour by the bunker's owner Mindaugas, Falk was informed that when it was built the surrounding land was flat; seeds landed, saplings grew and now there is a forest. The bunker was originally a telecommunications centre, set up as a back-up station to keep broadcasting in the eventuality of a nuclear war. It was built between 1983 to 1985 and abandoned in 1991 when the Russians left Lithuania.

Falk explains: "Mindaugas has taken this space and adapted it into a place of theatre. The rooms now present a bewildering array of set tableaus: the red room with gleaming white bust of Lenin, table laid out with photographs of the Central Committee and map of the world on the wall where there is no separate Baltic States just one grey blue mass of the Soviet Union; the room with gas masks laid out on display on trestle tables; the interrogation room with picture of Trotsky; the medical room with gynaecological chair and forceps; the Soviet shop with authentic Soviet products including a can of drinking water; the children’s schoolroom with Soviet school books, and a room Mindaugas is particularly proud of: the faithfully recreated Soviet apartment, replete with television set, laid tea table, children’s toys and china figurines.

"He has meticulously salvaged Soviet paraphernalia from local markets, arranging each space with the dedicated affection of an artist. The effect is eery: the uncanny reality of the Soviet regime enhanced by the mould growing on the furniture and the sense of being lost in an absurd system."

Falk added: "Mindaugas helped set this show up eight years ago. He tells me he got the idea for the Soviet Bunker from his aunt. The purpose of the re-enactment is educational – colleges send students here to learn from the experience; businesses also send employees here for recreation! Mindaugas employs an actor for each performance: it is a one-man tour de force – a torrent of abuse and humiliation lightened by the laughter of the audience’s embarrassment. Afterwards, the actor asks the audience whether they like their freedom – the message being that the absurdity of the past needs to be remembered, so as not to be repeated."

Red-walled exhibition room with rows of wooden chairs facing a portrait of Lenin and a map of the Soviet Union on the wall, with a potted plant in the foreground
Interior of Soviet nuclear bunker with grey curtains, Soviet emblem on wall, vintage posters, photographs display and red flowers in planter
Man in Soviet military uniform standing in a bunker corridor with a red and white flag, notice board and potted plant
Wooden desk with scattered documents, books and technical equipment beside a window with sheer curtains, with Soviet-era items and a calendar pinned to the pale wall behind
Red-walled Soviet bunker room with white Lenin bust, red-draped table, vintage television monitor and propaganda materials displayed on red brick walls
Soviet bunker office space with green upper walls and brown lower walls, featuring a blue container, desk lamp, refrigerator and portrait photograph on the wall
Brown leather seats with gas masks displayed on stands across trestle tables in the Soviet nuclear bunker's gas mask exhibition room
Soviet instructional poster with Cyrillic text displayed on concrete wall next to gas mask and brown package in recreated bunker theatre installation
Vintage Soviet gas mask mounted on a faded yellow panel with Cyrillic text and measurement markings, displayed on a concrete wall inside the bunker
White vintage refrigerator against bright blue walls in a Soviet nuclear bunker, with a grey jacket hanging above and shelves displaying Soviet-era objects
Sparse Soviet bunker room with cream curtained changing area, green-painted mirror and shelving, small stool, wall posters and basic furnishings on concrete floor
A sparse Soviet-era office room with a wooden desk, weighing scales and typewriter against weathered grey concrete walls
Soviet-era military training posters hang above trestle tables displaying gas masks in a former nuclear bunker recreated as a theatre space
Weathered wooden cabinet with green shelving containing various Soviet-era items and artefacts, displayed against a crumbling white wall in the former nuclear bunker
A 1950s-style living room display inside the Soviet nuclear bunker featuring a brown sofa, vintage television, wooden chair, tea set on a lace-covered table, patterned curtains and cream-coloured wall panels
A figurine of a man holding a child stands on a vintage television set draped with fabric, positioned in front of perforated panels and a gold and burgundy patterned textile
A man in military uniform and cap stands in a concrete corridor of the Soviet nuclear bunker as visitors approach from the foreground
Soviet bunker interior with concrete benches lining the sides and a central platform, illuminated by hanging pendant lights
A long concrete corridor with bare walls and overhead pipes leads into the distance, illuminated by pendant lights, showing the austere interior of the Soviet nuclear bunker
Interior of a Soviet nuclear bunker showing weathered concrete walls with bullet holes, a heavy metal vault door with a red wheel, metal railing, green chair and overhead light bulb
Share

Further Reading