Knopfstadt

Since 2021, I have documented Bärnau’s industrial transformation—once Germany’s button-making hub. The project evolved from documentation to an artistic exploration of change and decay, combining archival images, still lifes, and factory interiors.

Since 2021, I have documented Bärnau’s industrial transformation—once Germany’s leading center of button production with over 35 factories. Home to the world’s only button-making school, the town played a key role in the industry but now reflects the decline of traditional manufacturing in Europe.

What began as a documentary project evolved into an artistic exploration of change, decay, and disappearance. The abandoned factories and their remnants stand as symbols of transformation, reflecting the inevitability of change and the passage of time—not just in industry, but in life itself.

My approach combines archival images, still lifes, and factory interiors. Using both digital and analog photography, I explore contrasts between past and present, presence and absence.

Through this interplay of documentary and artistic expression, the project raises questions about identity, memory, and impermanence.

A selection of this work was exhibited at the Goethe-Institut in Paris as part of the Paris Photo 2023 program, curated by the Deutsche Börse Foundation. Some pieces were also acquired for the art collection of the District of Upper Palatinate, with exhibitions planned, including one in Bärnau in August 2025.