A sergeant in the French Army, Remi Lucidi was found beside a skyscraper. He died working on his hobby of the past few months: rooftopping, or doing dangerous stunts on sometimes off-limits skyscraper roofs for photographs of stunning skylines.
Lucidi’s death is one of many incidents during which rooftoppers have been dealt serious or even fatal blows. Many are beginning to wonder: Of what value is the art that these people make? Lucidi, who was 30 when he died, would take photos and selfies from the roofs of tall buildings. Because some photos required stunts like dangling from ledges and climbing up dangerous places, many people on the platforms to which he posted pictures argue that his art did not merit the profound risk it took to make it.
Some people who argue against rooftopping also argue against those who, like Lucidi, trespass abandoned buildings and roofs to shoot social media content. While rooftopping is part of this, rooftoppers are usually more interested in making art in a relatively educational manner than in becoming social media influencers.
Other argue in favor of rooftopping, stating that it is no different from other adventures that necessitate risk. Supporters and admirers of Lucidi’s art claim him as a talented and restless adventurer.
A group of rooftoppers in Hong Kong, HK Urbex, said that “rooftopping is focused more on the thrill and the experience of being in high, vertiginous and perilous locations” and defended their more limited definition of urban investigation as “exploring abandoned places in a way that is safer, more documentational and historical in nature.”
Other rooftoppers dislike being called a rooftopper. Baptiste Hermant is a 23-year-old, also from France, who describes himself as an explorer. He recently posted photos of himself dangling from different major locations, something that is very dangerous without proper professional equipment.
To summarize the argument, most people are against rooftopping. HK Urbex puts it simply: “A like is not worth a life.”
Lucidi’s death is one of many incidents during which rooftoppers have been dealt serious or even fatal blows. Many are beginning to wonder: Of what value is the art that these people make? Lucidi, who was 30 when he died, would take photos and selfies from the roofs of tall buildings. Because some photos required stunts like dangling from ledges and climbing up dangerous places, many people on the platforms to which he posted pictures argue that his art did not merit the profound risk it took to make it.
Some people who argue against rooftopping also argue against those who, like Lucidi, trespass abandoned buildings and roofs to shoot social media content. While rooftopping is part of this, rooftoppers are usually more interested in making art in a relatively educational manner than in becoming social media influencers.
Other argue in favor of rooftopping, stating that it is no different from other adventures that necessitate risk. Supporters and admirers of Lucidi’s art claim him as a talented and restless adventurer.
A group of rooftoppers in Hong Kong, HK Urbex, said that “rooftopping is focused more on the thrill and the experience of being in high, vertiginous and perilous locations” and defended their more limited definition of urban investigation as “exploring abandoned places in a way that is safer, more documentational and historical in nature.”
Other rooftoppers dislike being called a rooftopper. Baptiste Hermant is a 23-year-old, also from France, who describes himself as an explorer. He recently posted photos of himself dangling from different major locations, something that is very dangerous without proper professional equipment.
To summarize the argument, most people are against rooftopping. HK Urbex puts it simply: “A like is not worth a life.”