The idea for the project came from the feeling that we are involuntarily witnessing a situation that we and society will remember for a long time. The synchronicity of the massive restrictions is both disturbing and comforting for society as a whole
A book was created for the project, which is published now.
Because of the current situation of a second lockdown, the exhibition is canceled for now. I will let you know as soon we will have a new date in 2021.
The Leipzig Book Fair is a meeting place. Here, authors exchange ideas with their readers and publishers. Where last year 286,000 visitors celebrated literature together with the reading festival “Leipzig reads” and the Manga-Comic-Con, the entire city suddenly came to a stand-still.
Since July 2020, small conferences and congresses have again been allowed to take place in Saxony. The next Book Fair will take place may 27th-30th, 2021.
Just forget everything around you. The guests want to be entertained. They look forward to a nice evening, are calm and relaxed. A place where you can leave behind the stressful everyday life. People can be showered with humor and fun. They enjoy this together with their friends and families.
Roy has been permitted to make his audience laugh again.
At first, Corona felt so far away. Then we had to close the hotel within two weeks and sent almost all of our entire workforce on short-time work. But a hotel is like a big ship: it takes time for everything to come to a standstill. And although we are currently not accommodating any guests, everything must keep flowing. For example, all water pipes are flushed every day, the building is monitored and our reservations are working at full speed with the many rebooking requestes.
Operations started again on May 15, 2020
The German National Library is accessible to everyone. It is proud of largest knowledge archive in Germany. Libraries and publishers work together. We want to make material for scientific purposes available online. To do this, we open access to large amounts of data in a short time.
For this year I no longer expect normality and therefore no major events. Our anniversary with many invited guests of honor had to be canceled. We are developing a wonderful publication for this.
The German National Library has been open again since May 4, 2020 but is requiring advance notification.
We always work when other people have finished work. The hall vibrates with light and fog. The guests immerse into another world for a while. Now it is quiet here. Since we’re an international cast and we knew the borders would close, some of the artists flew home to their families. Others are currently living in our artist flat above the theater. The daily training must go on for everyone so the artists stay fit and their bodies stay in shape.
Since June 6, 2020, viewers can visit the Varieté again.
Moderator Freddy Holzapfel
To be on stages, to present events, concerts and to present people – to entertain people, that’s my job. Now the stage is empty, and the stands are orphaned. It looks a little like a rehearsal, but then you get excited. We know that the ranks will soon fill up; the noise level will increase. Adrenaline! I love it when the curtain is about to be raised. But now nothing is going on. And nobody knows when it will start again …
Showman Tino Sperlich with his son Jack
This year it’s our 30th anniversary. But there is nothing to celebrate right now. Unfortunately! My father was already a travelling showman and my grandpa even had a circus. It was never a question, what I would do. The show is our life. No matter where we go, everyone knows us. But now we spend most of our time at home, tending our garden. I have rarely seen it bloom like this. Actually that’s nice, but if the show does not get on the road by until September, there will be no more showmen in the future.
Since July 3, 2020, the Sperlichs have been on tour again with strict conditions.
On the premises of the former wallpaper factory there are numerous ateliers and studios for artists and other creative people – as well as our “space station”. Before Corona, since we started ten years ago, we had finally reached the point where all workplaces were rented out on a long-term basis. Then it went from 100 to 0. We used the time to do spring cleaning, looking for new tenants and get on with renovations.
On May 4, 2020, the space station was also reopened for its existing customers.
The federal government has issued a ban on my industry and I had to close my salon. Since then everyone has realized how important my job as a master hairdresser is. Systemically relevant – so it says in the reports. People feel uncomfortable because they don’t have a fresh haircut. The crisis has made my industry much more important and valued. Personally, the exchange in online meetings with colleagues gave me a lot of strength and showed that this forced time off is also a gift which helps me grow.
Ulrike Daume opened her salon on May 5th, 2020 and every customer wanted an appointment right away.
At my place, dog owners meet for dog training on our 12,000 square meters of land. Normally there is hardly any parking space left. We were even prohibited from individual training by the health department. Every federal state has different rules. A uniform regulation would be desirable. There is currently no support for owners of young dogs or puppies from a dog school. This is of course not optimal for their socialization and very difficult for first time owners. Until we continue, we will at least show our customers online exercises and tricks that they can train with their animals.
The dog center has been open again since May 2, 2020.
At the Leipzig School of Media, “The focus on people” is not just a slogan, but everyday life. All advanced education at the school, which can be found in the program in the form of seminars, courses and workshops, has the focus on lifelong learning. Covid-19 has of course significantly restricted the implementation of these courses and life on the media campus came to a standstill. It is now clear to us that digital implementation is also feasible and productive, but there is no direct communication with people from all professional groups and regions who would otherwise be in residence. Not least because personal contact and direct feedback are very important to us for our work. Personally, I hope that we can acquire new knowledge from the hurdles we face and emerge from the crisis as an even stronger team.
There is always life here! Families and friends come to us to have a good time and have fun doing sports. The entire trampoline park is currently down: the music is off, the air cushions are flat and the colored lights on the ninja parkour are no longer shining. Nevertheless, you somehow get the feeling that the door is opening at any moment and a children’s birthday party is storming in. The spirit of our fun and amusement park is still in the air despite it being closed for weeks.
Since May 20, 2020, jumping has resumed in the Jump House.
Integration assistent Rosalie Glawe
We are here in a playground, the bone place. In my opinion, this is usually the most crowded playground in Leipzig. There is screaming, jumping, rocking – now there is not a single child here. Playground equipment is surrounded by tape and fences. Except for the chatter of birds, there is silence. That feels bleak. Now children are no longer allowed to go to kindergarten. I am also not allowed to see the child I am caring for as an integration assistant because of the corona pandemic. Since my contract runs out in the summer, I don’t even know if I can even see her anymore. That doesn’t feel good right now. My work is still so unfinished, we still had so many plans …
Rosalie Glawe could resume her work on May 11, 2020.
We are a place of encounters, joy of life, hustle and bustle. We dance with children and adults. Usually this is where the bear rages. Now, however, nobody is here, the dance halls are empty. This forced break feels very weird. It makes us sad to come to the dance school only to meet someone in the office, not to listen to music – that’s rather sad. We are now at least trying to get the positive out of this break: We are expanding our learning videos and online dance lessons, and we are busy developing our new app. We couldn’t have done that so quickly in the normal everyday dance school.
Tina and Oliver could reopen their dance school on May 28, 2020.
In the FALCO restaurant we look after our guests very personally and with great enthusiasm. It is a place full of passion, a space for enjoyment. Due to the “social distancing” this contact is put on hold, one keeps away from everything and everyone. I miss the exchange with others in particular and, above all, as a sommelier, I miss a recommendation for an exclusive wine from our region. It really hurts in the heart.
The FALCO is inviting guestes to feast again above the roofs of the city since June 2nd.
I have been working in media design at DAT for almost 18 years. Normally 300 people work in our facility. A colorful and varied life in front of and in the house. Driving services on the streets, a lively excitement in the hallways. You can hear people talking and laughing with each other everywhere.
Since I belong to the risk group due to my health restrictions, I was advised to stay at home for my own safety. I live with my mother. I miss social contacts a lot and I’m also a bit bored. I would like to see my friends properly and not just in video chat.
I wish all those affected by Covid-19 a good and quick recovery and that people always treat each other carefully and not carelessly, so that the situation will soon relax again and “normal” communication will be possible.
I’m standing here in a deserted stadium. That’s nothing special at first, because this is what the Red Bull Arena looks like almost every day. The difference at the moment, however, is that due to the corona restrictions, there are no spectators even during the football games. Usually the vibe here is euphoric, it’s very loud and you see grown people doing things that they normally don’t do in public – singing, screaming, crying. An unbelievable community experience that we unfortunately must do without.
The first Bundesliga game without spectators took place on May 16, 2020.
Thanks to everyone at this special time for participating in this project. I was overwhelmed by how many wonderful people I got to know and how willing we were to tell their own story. Unfortunately, in the end, I wasn’t able to take photos of everyone who contacted me. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me and for immediately agreeing to participate. It was a lot of goose bumps for me … standing in an empty exhibition hall that I only knew before, having to endure the silence in a hotel, sitting at the table with the Sperlich family, the showmen, and wondering how life is, will probably continue, are just a few of these moments.
My special thanks go to INNSiDE by Melià and Mr Robert Bauer, who immediately agreed to make his wonderful Sky Lounge available for the exhibition.
I would also like to thank the Cultural Foundation of the Free State of Saxony, which enables me to present this work with a grant. And of course the brandcom agency, which has decided to work with me.
For more information, please write me a message.