Andrej Balco’s ‘Domesticas’ is a photographic project that explores the interaction between wealthy Brazilians and their domestic servants. Balco used a medium format camera and artificial illumination to capture these servants, their houselords and their common environment.
According to Balco, a crucial component to ‘Domesticas’ was the element of choice in the domestic workers he photographed: "I was attempting to create a portrait of them in their domestic or work environment, in the position that they had chosen themselves."
Portraits of Domestic Workers
‘Domesticas' Explores Relationship Between Servants and
Trend Themes
1. Photographic Documentation of Domestic Workers - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in using photography to shed light on the relationship between domestic workers and their employers.
2. Exploring Power Dynamics in Household Relationships - Potential for disruptive innovation in studying and understanding the power dynamics between wealthy individuals and their domestic servants.
3. Medium Format Photography in Social Commentary - Disruptive innovation opportunity in using medium format photography to capture and convey social issues like the interaction between domestic workers and their employers.
Industry Implications
1. Photography - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in the photography industry by creating new techniques or approaches in capturing social issues.
2. Sociology and Anthropology - Disruptive innovation potential in the field of sociology and anthropology by studying and analyzing power dynamics in household relationships.
3. Human Resources and Employment - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in the human resources and employment sector by reevaluating and improving the working conditions and dynamics for domestic workers.