Juergen Buergin

Juergen Buergin

By Arden de Raaij

Berlin based photographer Jürgen Bürgin picked up a camera about three years ago, initially to capture nature sceneries. But instead of capturing Nature, Jürgen’s photographic eye was far more attracted to urban sceneries. Now he’s a city-dweller who’s capturing major urban cityscapes and its inhabitants whenever he has the chance.

“Someone once said, that photography is writing with light. I deny that. In my opinion darkness and shadows are the basic elements of storytelling with photograph”

Girl and dob by Juergen Buergin
Girl and dob by Juergen Buergin

I’m an urban photographer, living in Berlin, Germany. Well to be exact in my daily life I’m working in movie business in Berlin as a PR manager, but photography is the creative counterpart to my daily job. My photography is a genre mixture between street, architecture and portrait photography, I call it urban photography simply because most of my photos are taken in the cities of the world. But that’s only helping me to name the genre.

Chicago cityscape photography by Jürgen Bürgin
Chicago cityscape photography by Jürgen Bürgin
Photography by Jürgen Bürgin
Photography by Jürgen Bürgin

What my photography is really about – is storytelling. I’m telling stories about life, relationships, solitude. But a photo only shows the world in a tiny little moment, a split second – not a good precondition to tell a whole story. So I’m using a trick: my photos pose unanswered questions, they show unexplained situations. Or they leave things in darkness, or in blurring, in fuzziness, they hide things. I agree with Diane Arbus, who once said: “A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you the less you know.” That’s what my photos are about. Someone once said, that photography is writing with light. I deny that. In my opinion darkness and shadows are the basic elements of storytelling with photography. So as I’m having those unanswered questions in my photographs, I’m using the desire of the viewer, to get secrets solved. So the viewer is becoming part of the process of my photographs: He is seeking his own solutions – and he is telling his own story.

Street photography by Jürgen Bürgin
Street photography by Jürgen Bürgin

The weird thing is, that I picked up my camera less than three years ago. So I’m having my experimental phase now – at the age of 40 – not as other at the age of 16 or 18 or 20 or so. I always think that is kind of an advantage for me. I’ve read a lot about arts, I was in numerous exhibitions, I was thinking and reading a lot about aesthetics. And I started to be creative after that phase. That might be of a positive influence for my photography. And the other weird thing: I bought a camera, because I wanted to make nature photos. Quite the opposite of what I’m doing today. It was a time when I left the city where Im living, Berlin, a lot to get into nature, to be in solitude in nature, to see all the birds and other animals in nature. I’m doing this still today, but my photographic passion lies in urbanity.

Street photography by Jürgen Bürgin
Street photography by Jürgen Bürgin

I’m not yet too sure about if I want to be photographer as a fulltime job. It’s a hard business, and I’m happy at the moment that I only do what I like in photography. I do not have to accept any assignments that I do not really like to accept. But sure it would be great to have some more exhibitions or to be represented by a gallery – or to publish my photographs in a photo book. So if any galleries should read this, feel free to contact me!

Street photography by Jürgen Bürgin
Street photography by Jürgen Bürgin
by Jurgin Burgin
by Jurgin Burgin
by Jurgin Burgin
by Jurgin Burgin
Street photography by Jürgen Bürgin
Street photography by Jürgen Bürgin