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The Longest Night

Arne Piepke & Maximilian Mann
After all cinemas had to close, the drive-in cinemas experienced a strong increase in attendance. On this rainy day, however, the cinema in Essen was hardly visited during the screening of a children‘s film. - 01.12.2020 Sebastian* poses for a portrait. He has been volunteering at the telephone counselling service in Dortmund (Germany) for 12 years: „Loneliness is a big social issue. I am often the first person callers talk to during the day.“ With the rising numbers of infections, the telephone counselling service was also increasingly called upon. „Some report fear of infection, others have shocked me with their attitude towards Corona and the measures taken,“ Sebastian tells us. (*Name chosen by the protagonist) - 27.11.2020 The mosques are still open, but may only be visited by a limited number of worshippers. The chairman of the Anadolu mosque in Dortmund (Germany), Seref Celik, recounts: „Since Corona, nothing has been the same. Right now, almost every week a member of our community dies from or with Corona. It is terrible“ - 13.12.2020 The Christmas market in Essen is trying to offer a digital alternative online after a cancellation. The website displays the various traders who otherwise set up their stalls at the Christmas market. - 25.11.2020 David Storz, 24, poses for a portrait. He moved to Aachen in October and fell ill with COVID-19 after a few weeks. During the quarantine he was alone in the flat, got a fever and lost his sense of taste. "The feeling of anonymity is even greater because of the situation. I miss the brief encounters that give one a sense of community in society." - 21.11.2020 The hallway in David Storz‘s shared apartment. „I was shocked that I of all people had fallen ill. Why me now and not those who are still partying with ten people? There were only two people on my contact list,“ he says at the end of his quarantine. - 21.11.2020 Pastor Björn Henkel drives through Kassel Niederzwehren on Christmas Eve with a mobile church service. For this, Christmas music was recorded beforehand by a musician from Kassel, Germany. - 24.12.2020 Marie Marta Fritzenkötter poses for a portrait in her room in a retirement home in Oer-Erkenschwick. In March 2020, she was diagnosed with corona and had to spend her 99th birthday alone in quarantine. „Corona is the worst crisis since the Second World War, it has changed a lot. There used to be concerts here in the house, now I‘m very bored.“ - 06.01.2021 Gertrud Schop (middle) places candles in Zella-Mehlis (Germany) for all those who died of or with COVID-19. She began her campaign in March with 249 candles. From 28-30 December 2020, she will try to put up a total of 30,000 candles with the help of three others. „One candle for a person who has died is the least I can do,“ says the 60-year-old. With the start of vaccination in Germany, she ends her campaign. - 29.12.2020 The pandemic has led to a strong increase in online trade. By 27.11.2020, Deutsche Post has already delivered more parcels than in the whole of 2019. - 25.11.2020 Mortician Carsten Strauß, 34, poses for a portrait in Dortmund. The infection protection rules make it much more difficult to show sympathy to relatives: "We accompany people in a state of emergency. With a handshake or through facial expressions, you can better express your sympathy to people. That is currently falling away." With COVID deceased, a last farewell at an open coffin is also not possible. "Saying goodbye is enormously important. But with a Corona case, unfortunately, we have to keep the casket closed." - 02.03.2021 A view of the „Hannibal“ residential complex in the Nordstadt district of Dortmund (Germany) on the first day of the strict lockdown in Germany. From this day onwards the retail sector will be closed and compulsory attendance at schools will be lifted throughout North Rhine-Westphalia. - 16.12.2020 Laurence Hebel (36) and Peter Bock (34) pose for a portrait. In May 2018, they opened their restaurant Délibon in Cologne and employed 21 people. Despite many visitors in the summer of 2020, the numbers plummeted in autumn due to the Corona restrictions and the restaurant had to file for insolvency. "It was very hard to tell our employees. We all had to cry," says Laurance. Peter Bock is now an unemployment benefit recipient. "The leap from being a manager of a restaurant to private insolvency is very stark. Hartz IV (unemployment benefit) is no fun." - 15.01.2021 "We lacked realistic measures from the state. It's not only about operating costs, but also about staff," tell Laurence Hebel (36) and Peter Bock (34), who had to close their restaurant Delibon in Cologne for good in September 2020. "The levies are enormous and we couldn't save enough over the good summer months". - 15.01.2021 Heike Werntgen (45) poses for a portrait in Cologne. In early November 2020, she got sick with COVID-19 and still feels consequences of it today. "I have never been so sick in my life." Fatigue and exhaustion have limited the freelance actress and theater teacher enormously. "I have no previous illnesses and was always fit. But after the illness, even taking a shower was a daily task. In the meantime, I can manage a 30-minute walk again." – 05.02.2021 Since November 2020, no spectators have been allowed into stadiums. The 2nd Bundesliga match between VfL Bochum and Fortuna Düsseldorf (5:0) on 30 November also takes place in front of empty stands. - 30.11.2020 A birthday party with around 15 people outside of Dortmund (Germany). Officially, only a maximum of five people from two households are allowed to meet. - 12.12.2020 Hugo Piepke, 87, poses for a portrait at his home in Niedersfeld (Germany). For the first time he is not with his family on Christmas Eve. He is only visited briefly by his grandson (the photographer). Normally, the family meets in a large circle on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. - 24.12.2020 A street scene in Dortmund on 17 January 2021. The incidence rate on that day is 133,1 per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the city. There are discussions about imposing a night curfew throughout the country. - 17.01.2021 In Essen, many stalls have already been set up for the Christmas market. Due to the strict regulations of the city, only 24 stalls may be opened throughout the city. - 25.11.2020 Christoph Krause, 80, has been playing his horn every day since the end of March 2020 for residents of the “Schmallenbach House” in Fröndenberg. "It is really the most beautiful thing to make others happy. Through music I have the opportunity to stay in contact with people, despite the ban on entering the retirement home." For Christoph Krause and the residents, making music has become a fixed ritual. - 26.02.2021 The stairs in front of the Cologne Cathedral on 11.11.2020, the start of Carnival in Cologne. There is no stage programme, no parades and no handing over of keys in the city. There is an all-day ban on alcohol consumption in the entire city area. The police were deployed with several hundred officers to ensure that the prohibitions were observed. - 11.11.2020 Alena Leudert, 27, poses for a portrait in her flat in Frankfurt am Main (Germany). While working as a stewardess, her desire to become a pilot grew. After a year and a half of preparation for the training, the programme was suspended indefinitely by Lufthansa due to the Corona crisis: „ There is no alternative for me but to go into the cockpit. My dream has been shattered. It is very difficult for me to accept that.“ Alena Leudert used to travel as a stewardess up to 25 days a month, in November 2020 she did not have a single flight. - 03.12.2020 A street scene on New Year‘s Eve in Dortmund‘s Nordstadt. This year, the city is setting up three prohibited zones for fireworks in the downtown area. Furthermore, there is a ban on assemblies and alcohol in public spaces throughout the city. - 01.01.2021
A photo-essay about the psychological difficulties during the second Corona Lockdown in Germany.

As the days became shorter, stricter measures were inevitable. The panic and fear of the first months and the relief during the summer now give way to isolation and loneliness. Life is once again shifting to the four walls of one‘s own home.

How do people endure such circumstances during this dark season? And how do people cope with having fewer social contacts?

Since November 2020, Maximilian Mann and Arne Piepke are photographing people who have been particularly affected by the restrictions. Personal stories that tell of emotional complexity and exceptional psychological situations. Conditions that are individual and at the same time collectively experienced.