Piles of files and metre-long archives are stereotypical of bureaucracy. Every citizen, anywhere in the world, has to deal with this executive full of laws and regulations. What do civil servants' workplaces say about their personalities and the country they work in? With that question, photographer Jan Banning and publicist Will Tinnemans travelled to Bolivia, China, France, India, Yemen, Liberia, Russia and the United States.
They created the series ‘Bureaucratica’, of which three portraits can be seen here. The VU owns five images from this series. The portraits depict the civil service in various forms of state.
Sense of symmetry
From the visitor's point of view and with a sense of symmetry, Banning always captures civil servants in more or less the same way. The desk, be it a simple little table or a shiny piece of office furniture, separates the individual from the rule. Everyone stands at that desk from time to time for a passport, permit or registration. Of course, the title ‘Bureaucratica’ also applies well to semi-government departments and educational institutions, such as the Vrije Universiteit. The photographs hold up a mirror to us and provide a humorous look at the everyday life of working people.
