“My home is my castle, and work stays outside” – this saying has been a thing of the past since the first mandatory home office in April 2021. Werner Bachmeier impressively shows what a world looks like in which work and private life are inextricably linked in the ten motifs of “Home Office”. For this, the Munich-born, who has lived in Ebersberg since 1994, was named the winner in the “Series” category by the Bavarian Journalists’ Association (BJV) in the Pressefoto Bayern 2021 competition.
The selected images come from a pool of 30 to 40 photos that have been taken since the beginning of the pandemic. But the project is far from over, because as part of a long-term study, the freelance photojournalist wants to visit other people all over Germany to show what creative solutions they have found to completely new problems. His motivation? The subject of “work photography” has been with him for around 40 years, first parallel to his job as an electrical mechanic, then in order to finance the subsequent photo engineering studies with corresponding commissioned work.
Even after the step into self-employment in 1986, Bachmeier implemented corresponding subjects, sometimes ordered by editorial offices, sometimes as a free offer. The impressive results are documented in his book “My second self – portraits from the world of work”, published in 2021, the cover of which shows the blast furnace master on the last day before the Maxhütte closes.
Werner Bachmeier is about telling stories with pictures.
(Photo: Peter Hinz-Rosin)
And just as the now 64-year-old managed to gain the trust of women and men in production halls, handicrafts, shops and supermarkets thanks to technical training and competence in questions and thus to take intensive snapshots from “real life” “Homeworkers”, whom he finds mainly through word of mouth, like to take a look at their everyday lives. Anita Witko from Munich, who came into contact through a mutual friend, initially asked for a little time to think about it – “After all, it is a glimpse into privacy that is granted.” – but was completely reassured after the first phone call. The photojournalist first explained his concept to her very sensitively and then emailed her.
For Bachmeier, it’s not about throwing voyeuristic glances in the living room and bedroom, but rather telling stories without saying how different people manage to relocate their professional activities to their highly private environment.
The photographer achieves this by asking his protagonists to work normally while remaining completely calm. This is also the case with the commercial clerk Witko: “He was sitting noiselessly in the hallway and had also muted the camera so that no clicking could be heard during the recordings. In the end I had totally forgotten that he was there.”
Bachmeier asks his protagonists to work normally while he remains completely calm.
(Photo: Werner Bachmeier)
It will be a similar experience for the young couple who, due to their living conditions, turn the kitchen into a conference room as soon as both have to make a phone call or take part in a video call at the same time. Or the IT specialist, whose “commute” from bed to desk is only ten steps, including the trip to the coffee machine, and who therefore has to get his fitness watch to display the target daily target of eight thousand in another way.
The Sils family of four, who lived in Grafing until recently, can also be seen in the apartment that they originally moved into as a couple and where father Mikus suddenly had to find space to work after he was seconded to the home office. The architect said with a quiet laugh: “The first thing Werner Bachmeier said, who had already sounded sympathetic on the phone, was: ‘Relax!’ Then he let everything happen, every turbulent situation. ” How she has it with small children, for example when the daughter runs into the room in the middle of the video conference and says “Lunch is ready!” calls out what the colleagues acknowledged with an understanding smile.
Other families can also be seen sharing the available space, which is not always easy – although many parents are also happy about the time saved by not having to travel to the office. During his on-site visits, Bachmeier found out that some people shift their work into the early morning or late night hours in order to get the children ready in the morning without hectic or to greet them with a cooked meal at lunchtime. Such reasons or the possibility of being able to work in-house to accompany relatives who are dependent on the presence of a trusted person due to the onset of dementia will, in the opinion of the photographer, be decisive for employees, the home office, paired perhaps with a few days of presence in the company, wanting to keep it even after the pandemic.
Even after the pandemic, many will probably continue to work from home.
(Photo: Werner Bachmeier)
For companies, on the other hand, it is worthwhile not having to keep expensive real estate by reducing office space, which is why they might not only offer this form of working, but even make it mandatory at some point. Here, however, the deputy DGB chairman in the Ebersberg district, Alfred Daum, also sees a certain danger. “Under the umbrella term ‘humanising the world of work’ we were already concerned with working hours, protection and safety in the eighties. To this end, a number of things have been developed in the companies over the years that I now see a step backwards.” And further: “We start over with the discussions in every generation. That’s the worst.”
There is self-exploitation, of which Mikus Sils also reports: “In the beginning I was enthusiastic about being able to attend all meals. But then I realized that it had crept in to work a lot more and to really practice have to exhibit the work from time to time. “
Bachmeier also gives attention to ergonomics in the workplace. “The companies have invested a lot of money in their infrastructure, because you can find the best equipment in the medium-sized companies” – what he sees in the people at home, on the other hand, is 95 percent self-constructed. Sure, because the voluminous office chair often doesn’t even fit in the apartment. So make do with a standing desk made of cardboard to avoid back pain. Or with a height-adjustable desk, like the one Anita Witko bought after the 1.90 meter tall woman realized that she would definitely not be able to continue working at the kitchen table in the long term. “However, the only room it fit into was our multi-function guest ironing room with the washing machine.” Which is still there, as you can see. In order to take this picture, Bachmeier had to unhook the door to the hall – but he never does any staging, nor does he move any furniture. Instead, “you stick to the wall and try to put the last bit of what is important to you into the picture”.
The ergonomics in the home office often leave a lot to be desired.
(Photo: Werner Bachmeier)
There will be an opportunity to view the final results at various exhibitions that the BJV is holding this year at different locations with all of the winning pictures. Bachmeier is very happy about the award, as he is “not a prize hunter who takes part in every competition”. On the one hand, he is happy that the jury considered the topic relevant. On the other hand, he hopes that the project will be noticed even more in this way and that it can continue by saying: “Come and see me!”
At the end of the day, the goal is a retrospective with probably 30 to 40 very different, complementary, views of a changing work reality. He is still open to people who want to present their creative solutions – be it in connection with space problems or with regard to innovative living and care concepts that are only made possible by the home office. In any case, Anita Witko and Mikus Sils had so much fun – “we laughed a lot and the time flew by” – that they warmly recommend taking part.