Books

Relics of the Cold War

The Cold War is over — yet signs of it still exist. For forty years the Iron

Curtain divided the countries of Europe into East and West. The arms race

was unleashed, nuclear fallout shelters were constructed, and everyone

braced for the worst. Dutch documentary photographer Martin Roemers (*1962)

has spent ten years in search of the traces of this period, traveling

through the countries of former enemies on both sides of the line. He

explored and documented underground tunnels, abandoned system control

centers, former barracks, rotting tanks, and destroyed monuments. His

photographs, which are presented here with essays by H.J.A. Hofland and Nadine Barth,
are a stark and moving document of this era of hostility, deterrence politics,
and the arms race — and also serve as an appeal for future peace.

15 photographs are in the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.

Hatje Cantz Publishers, 144 pages, 28x26 cm. 73 photos in color. Text: English
Signed copy including shipping:
Netherlands € 42,50 Europe € 47,50 Other countries € 55,-
Email martin@martinroemers.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kabul

Portraits of ISAF troops in Kabul, Afghanistan. The photographs are taken with the antique plate
camera which Martin Roemers borrowed from an Afghan street photographer. The exposure time
of each portrait is 10 seconds.
11 portraits are in the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.

Legermuseum, 48 pages, 30x24 cm, 28 photos (16 portraits) in black & white. Text: English, Dutch.

Signed copy including shipping:
Netherlands € 27,50 Europe € 32,50 Other countries € 40,-
Email martin@martinroemers.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

The Never-Ending War

Portraits of 40 World War Two veterans from Russia, the USA, the UK, Poland, the Netherlands
and Germany. The photographs are accompanied by short interviews. Whereas the
photos are unambiguous, the interviews describe individual stories: a Dutch prisoner of
war who was in Nagasaki when the atom bomb fell, a German who was in an
American POW camp where 1200 died, a Flemish/Belgian nationalist who became
an SS officer, the last German survivor of the plot to kill Hitler in 1944 etcetera.

“Memory takes possession of the face, the eyes focus for no more than a few
seconds on infinity and an inaudible voice says: this is what it was like.
Look at Martin Roemers’ photographs: for here are the faces of veterans
listening to the voice of their memory.”  H.J.A. Hofland.
The portraits won a World Press Photo Award in 2006.

QV Publishers, 122 pages,  30x24 cm, 40 portraits in black & white, 11 photos in color.
Photos and interviews: Martin Roemers. Text: English, Dutch. 
Signed copy including shipping:
Netherlands € 32,50 Europe € 37,50 Other countries € 45,-
Email martin@martinroemers.com 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trabant. The Final Days of Production - Die letzten Tagen der Produktion 1990-1992

In the spring of 1991, the final Trabant was fabricated after 34 years of
production. This signalled the end of an era: the compact car with a
plastic body made in East-Germany since 1957 was the epitome of the Eastern
Block car and was well-known beyond the borders of the German Democratic
Republic. In the West the Trabi was seen as reactionary and was derided for
its technical simplicity. Within the GDR it was unloved and treasured in
equal measure, a fixed component of everyday life and a reflection of social
status. After the fall of the Wall, enthusiasm for the exotic vehicle grew
in the West for a short time, while in the East interest in the Trabi waned.
This publication documents the final production of the Trabant in Zwickau.
The powerful photographs recall a lost period. They grant us insight into
the work and everyday life of that time and preserve them for the future.

Wasmuth Publishers, 84 pages, 24x22 cm, 41 photos in black & white. Text: English, German. 

Signed copy including shipping:
Netherlands € 27,50 Europe € 32,50 Other countries € 40,-
Email martin@martinroemers.com