"Street Workers"
by Eduardo Storch
My focus has been "Street Workers" like food trucks, magazine stands, candy kiosks and finally locksmiths, my current project.
Although there are "Locksmith Business Chains" that offer locksmith services in Montevideo, there are still kiosks on the street that people often go to. Some of the newer kiosks are part of the "Locksmith Chains", but there are still independent locksmiths throughout the city who work inside older and varied fibreglass, wood, or sheet metal kiosks. The latter are the ones that captivated me.
I started working on this series last year and it is still ongoing. I have called it "Closed Locksmiths" because I thought it would be interesting to note that workers literally spend long hours "locked" inside their kiosks every day.
It is in these kiosks where they endure the cold of winters, heating the spaces only with small heaters. During the summer, the sun turns the kiosk into an “oven” and the heat is mitigated by a small fan. In the kiosks the lighting conditions are precarious, maintaining the hygiene of the place is complex, and there is no bathroom, so they need to use the bathroom in a nearby bar. They spend most of the day standing or sitting uncomfortably and eating in what little space they have left.
I took all the photographs in Montevideo in black and white with high contrast to highlight the confinement environment.
I only found one woman who worked alongside her husband, but the rest were older men, most of whom have been working at the kiosk for a long time, some of them for more than 30 years.
I told them about my project and they not only gladly agreed to participate, but they spontaneously told me both about their job and about her life. I always brought them a hard copy of the photo or sent it to them on WhatsApp and so far everyone has had very positive reactions to my work.
While listening to all their stories was an extremely interesting experience, I would like to highlight the story of one of the workers, in particular, Julio, who had one of the most striking kiosks and with which I spent the most time.
Julio is 71 years old; he is a turner by profession, but he never worked as such. He worked for 20 years as a large and well-known locksmith. He then became independent and opened the kiosk where he works now for 34 years. He is proud of the way he has decorated his booth, the lights he has placed outside, and the comments people make about his place.
He told me that he had not been in good health and that he had to wear a pacemaker. I could see a piece of paper on the wall of the kiosk that indicated the date of the pacemaker check, then I called him to ask how the check-up went. He thanked me for the call and he told me that he couldn't attend because he was busy working… he had two families to take care of, but he said he felt fine.
It is not just about documenting his work with images, behind them are people with their lives, with their stories ... photography allows me to immerse myself inside people; somehow I'm still a Doctor ... thankfully.
My name is Eduardo Storch and I am from Montevideo, Uruguay. Medical Doctor by profession ... Retired Obstetrician and Gynecologist.
I am an amateur photographer and I have discovered my passion for street photography. I am 74 years old and have four grandchildren.
Since my retirement almost two years ago, I have devoted myself to photography and tried to approach it in a completely different way. I also joined Facebook where I made very good friends who have inspired and guided me.
