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“At the end of the XIXth Century, mankind was about to fulfill an old dream. The idea of a fast and autonomous means of displacement was slowly becoming a reality for engineers all over the world. Thanks to its ideal location on the Great Lakes Basin, the city of Detroit was about to generate its own industrial revolution. Visionary engineers and entrepreneurs flocked to its borders.

In 1913, up-and-coming car manufacturer Henry Ford perfected the first large-scale assembly line. Within few years, Detroit was about to become the world capital of automobile and the cradle of modern mass-production. For the first time of history, affluence was within the reach of the mass of people. Monumental skyscapers and fancy neighborhoods put the city’s wealth on display. Detroit became the dazzling beacon of the American Dream. Thousands of migrants came to find a job. By the 50's, its population rose to almost 2 million people. Detroit became the 4th largest city in the United States.


Detroit, industrial capital of the XXth Century, played a fundamental role shaping the modern world. The logic that created the city also destroyed it. Nowadays, unlike anywhere else, the city’s ruins are not isolated details in the urban environment. They have become a natural component of the landscape. Detroit presents all archetypal buildings of an American city in a state of mummification. Its splendid decaying monuments are, no less than the Pyramids of Egypt, the Coliseum of Rome, or the Acropolis in Athens, remnants of the passing of a great Empire”. – Yves Marchand & Romain Meffre


Waiting hall, Michigan Central Station. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Waiting hall, Michigan Central Station. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



18th floor dentist cabinet, David Broderick Tower. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

18th floor dentist cabinet, David Broderick Tower. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Bagley-Clifford Office of the National Bank of Detroit

Bagley-Clifford Office of the National Bank of Detroit



Highland Park Police Station. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Highland Park Police Station. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Packard Motors Plant. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Packard Motors Plant. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Fisher Body 21 Plant. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Fisher Body 21 Plant. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Cass Technical High School. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Cass Technical High School. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Lee Plaza Hotel. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Lee Plaza Hotel. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Woodward Avenue. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Woodward Avenue. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Lafayette Building. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Lafayette Building. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Michigan Central Station. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Michigan Central Station. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)



Ballroom, American Hotel. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)

Ballroom, American Hotel. (Photo by Yves Marchand/Romain Meffre)
21 Jul 2013 10:51:00