Jürgen Schadeberg was born in Berlin in 1931. After working as an apprentice photographer for a German press agency in Hamburg, he emigrated to South Africa in 1950, where he became the art director and chief photographer for Drum Magazine. Jürgen was one of the few European photographers who documented the daily lives and struggles of black people during the apartheid regime. He also photographed many key political figures, including Nelson Mandela.
The Gorbals
In 1964, Schadeberg left South Africa for the UK to work as a freelancer for various magazines and publications and also to teach at the Central School of Art and Design in London. During his time in the UK, he documented the daily lives of inner-city working-class communities, creating a significant body of work. He captured the last days of the old tenements in Glasgow’s Gorbals district, which were demolished in the 1960s to make way for new housing and tower blocks.
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
The photographs taken by Schadeberg highlight the daily lives of families as they try to carry on with their lives during the demolition and re-housing phases, despite many of them living in semi-derelict conditions.
“I focused on everyday life, which for me was more interesting and often neglected by the media.” – Jürgen Schadeberg.
Jürgen, “I tried to photograph daily life – the ordinary and the mundane – as opposed to the glitter and glamour. It was a time when colour magazines had just started, and I began to do assignments for The Observer Magazine, The Sunday Times Magazine, and The Weekend Telegraph. It was a euphoric time of the swinging London scene, though I found this side of society uninspiring and superficial. That’s why I focused on everyday life, which, for me, was more interesting and often neglected by the media.”
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
“Alongside the superficial glitz, emerged satire, with irreverent shows such as ‘Beyond the Fringe’ and ‘That Was The Week That Was,’ which made fun of class, race, social issues, and the conventional British way of life. My work made it possible for me to cross cultural divides and jump from one social extreme to another. It was a time when personal computers, cell phones, and fax machines didn’t exist, leaving more room for social interaction than today.”
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
“It was easier to access people and buildings and therefore take photographs since there was no need for high-security checks. I think that photographers today have a greater difficulty in taking photographs, which might be the reason for the surge in contemporary photography – an artificial medium removed from reality. Viewing these images from a historical perspective will possibly give a clearer idea of lifestyle changes.”
Gallery
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
Photo © Jürgen Schadeberg.
All images © Jürgen Schadeberg, all rights reserved.
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- Article first published
- May 24, 2020
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