ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

William T. Vollmann's 'Carbon Ideologies' Translated into German by Freunde & Friends

publication · 2026-04-24

Berlin-based publisher Freunde & Friends has released a three-volume German translation of William T. Vollmann's acclaimed 'Carbon Ideologies,' originally published in the US. The book includes a road trip through Fukushima, describing the abandoned town of Tomioka and the journey to Kawauchi after the 2011 nuclear disaster. The excerpt details the eerie landscape of the no-go zone, with overgrown buildings and creaking shutters, contrasting with the earlier tsunami- earthquake relics.

Key facts

  • Freunde & Friends is a Berlin publisher.
  • The translation is of William T. Vollmann's 'Carbon Ideologies'.
  • The original work was highly praised in the USA.
  • The translation spans three volumes.
  • The excerpt describes a road trip on Route 349 and Route 36 to Tomioka.
  • Tomioka was forcibly evacuated after the Fukushima disaster.
  • The journey also goes to Kawauchi.
  • Tamura is described as a valley with tile-roofed houses.

Entities

Artists

  • William T. Vollmann

Institutions

  • Freunde & Friends

Locations

  • Berlin
  • Germany
  • Fukushima
  • Japan
  • Tomioka
  • Kawauchi
  • Tamura

Sources