Steidlville

Jakob Tuggener’s Fabrik, published in Zurich in 1943, is considered to be a milestone in the history of photography books. The series of 72 photographs in this Photo Epos of Technology is oriented toward the expressionist aesthetic of the silent movie. It imparts a sceptical view of the destructive potential of unbridled technological progress — at the time the Swiss military industry was producing weapons for World War II.
Tuggener’s uncompromising subjective photography and his critical attitude did not suit his time. Fabrik was not a commercial success — the copies were sold at a loss and in part apparently even converted to pulp. Now the work, which has since become a sought-after classic, is being reissued as a reprint with a contemporary afterword.