Autobahn
Lützerath
Germany, 2012

Garzweiler is one of Germany’s largest lignite mines, located west of Cologne. Over the past decades, villages, farmland and entire sections of infrastructure have disappeared to make way for the expansion of the open-cast mine. The A61 motorway between Wanlo and Jackerath was also taken out of service from 2018 onwards and partially dismantled to make room for the mine.

Lützerath lay at the edge of this area. The village became a symbol of resistance to the continued extraction of lignite. In January 2023, the occupied village was cleared by police. A few days later, tens of thousands of people gathered in Lützerath to protest against the expansion of Garzweiler and the demolition of the village.

A road that no longer leads anywhere. Asphalt that once stood for movement, connection and progress now comes to an abrupt end in the landscape. What seemed permanent turned out to be temporary. The road has become detached from the network it was built for, reduced to a remnant, a line without a destination.