JOE BUERGI | Haunting Portraits
“The “Haunting Portraits” series focuses on the hard workers of Bangladesh. They work either in the docks, shipyards, or as laborers in the brick factories outside Dhaka.
In 2020 I visited different places and portrayed the workers photographically.”
Over 160 million people live in a country four times the size of Switzerland. Bangladesh has the eighth-highest population density in the world and is growing rapidly. People are teeming everywhere, especially in Dhaka! It is a challenging city because it is rough, noisy, dirty, and sometimes foggy.
Working conditions are tough and, for many, a struggle for survival.
The temperatures are often very hot in the brick factories, the air mixed with dust, and the bricks heavy. Working in the blazing sun has scarred these people. They balance a load of 30 kilograms on their heads hundreds of times a day. An incredible feat. Men, women, and even children work in brick factories—many live on-site in shacks or simple shelters.
Equally hard is the work in the docks, unloading bricks, coal, or other goods. The goods are carried over small wooden bridges to the collection points, often all day long. A job that is equally done under the scorching heat.
In the shipyards, the most dangerous work, in my opinion, is done. Often with bare hands, hammers, or small tools, entire ships are dismantled.
Moreover, this is often done with pure muscle power and on ladders at dizzying heights.
As a result, many workers injure themselves or fall to their deaths.
Despite the hard working conditions, the people are very friendly and always have time for a photo.
I have the highest respect for the people from Bangladesh. On one side is the daily struggle to have enough food, but on the other side, the friendliest people you can imagine.
JOE BUERGI | ABOUT
Born in 1965 in Stans, Switzerland, Joe Buergi started around 2000 with photography.
He studied engineering at the Bale Institute of Technology and works now full-time as a project and team leader for the local government.
As a pure autodidact, he developed the knowledge by himself but also by studying the masters.
His music photography, together with travel, have become two of his life’s passions.
His photography focuses on music, culture, landscapes, and wildlife, reflecting a spatial and temporal journey through life.
Buergi seeks the quiet moments and the light in whatever context he finds himself.
He is an eclectic photographer who enjoys diversity in his imagery. Hence his images range from travel to landscapes and portraits. He believes that photography can capture those inimitable moments and empower us to change our world positively. Through his travels, he has developed his own photographic style.
