A Past Shrouded in Darkness

A young woman in a white dress, taking a photograph on the steps in front of Munich’s Feldherrnhalle – a selfie, perhaps, or a picture of the Theatine Church? She symbolizes innocence, peace, openness, and progress against the dark backdrop of nationalism, war, and death, embodied by the figure of a warrior at the Bavarian Army Memorial.

Erected in 1892 and dedicated to “the loyal and brave Bavarian army,” the monument would later witness even darker chapters of history. It became the scene of the Hitler–Ludendorff Putsch on November 9, 1923, and, following the Nazi seizure of power in 1933, a prominent site of National Socialist propaganda.

On a personal note, it was only during my most recent visit to Florence’s Piazza della Signoria that I was once again struck by the architectural resemblance to the Loggia dei Lanzi, which served as the inspiration for Munich’s Feldherrnhalle.
Incidentally, this photograph received an Honorable Mention at the 2025 Monochrome Photography Awards.