A good reason to confine yourself

This brief article proposes an analysis of a visual motif, the post-apocalyptic deserted city, as it was represented by photojournalists during the coverage of the COVID19 pandemic. After identifying some examples from audiovisual fiction, the text analyzes the different variants of this motif during the quarantine that emptied the streets of the cities. The article concludes with some reflections on visual motives and their possible articulation with the theories of mediatization.