Thomas Backens

Thomas Heinrich Backens (born March 24, 1859 in Flensburg , † March 25, 1925 in Marne ) was a German photographer.

Live and act

Thomas Backens was a son of the oil miller Jacob Marquard Backens (* March 16, 1820 in Flensburg; † March 21, 1868) and his second wife Christine Magdalena Margaretha, née Knutzen (* April 12, 1824). He had four siblings, three of whom were older than him. His father went bankrupt in 1856 and 1860, which led to the social decline of the family. In 1868 his father committed suicide, leaving four minor children behind. The mother ensured the family's livelihood as a laundry woman.

Despite the precarious situation at home, Backens was able to attend school for ten years. From May 1875 to May 1878 he trained as a musician with the city music director Christian Petersen in Sønderborg . He then moved to Altona , where he probably wanted to work as a musician. In September 1878 he moved back to his mother in Flensburg.

In 1880 at the latest, Wilhelm Dreesen Backens from Flensburg taught photography for two to three weeks. At that time it was not an apprenticeship with fixed training content. Presumably in 1880 he visited Meldorf as a traveling "picture collector" who was supposed to procure enlargement orders for Dreesen's studio. Because of the good business, he opened his own studio there that same year. Since no recordings are known to date from the early days, it is largely unclear what he did during this period. His local competitors were Claus Claussen, who worked in Meldorf from 1857, and Detlef Mehlert, who had a shop from 1872 that his brother had opened in 1862. This is likely to have contributed to the fact that Backens initially had economic problems. A sign of this is his “farewell concert” from April 1883, with the entrance fees of which he wanted to emigrate to America, following the example of an older brother. During his later time as a photographer, he continued to participate as a musician in mostly charitable events.

Although he had announced that he wanted to emigrate, Backens surprisingly took over Detlef Mehlert's photographic studio in Marne in May 1883. After his wedding, he lived and worked here permanently. The studio in Meldorf remained a subsidiary until 1902. Backens quickly enjoyed economic success in Marne. He took over the company from Johann Engelcke, who was the only real competitor in Marne. In 1887/88 he had a new residential and commercial building built, which had a modern studio and which housed a small shop. He also represented various musical instrument makers here.

Backens opened another studio in Brunsbüttelhafen around 1890 . The reason is likely to have been the construction of the Kiel Canal , which stimulated the local economy and promised good orders. He documented the construction of the canal and the opening of the Brunsbüttel lock with numerous photographs. By the outbreak of the First World War , he developed into the most important photographer in Süderdithmarschens. Due to his business success, he became one of the notables of Marnes.

photos

Backens tried to photograph the rapid technical and social changes in the region and to document worthwhile motifs from the pre-industrial era. He also dealt with current events in Dithmarschen. His works are worth mentioning because of their versatility. As usual with photographers in his day, he earned most of his income from portraits. At the same time, he worked in subject areas that were seldom considered in the then young photography. This was especially true for landscape photos of the west coast and the marshland, and now and then also the Geest. In addition, he captured daily life in town and country with the significant social differences in the picture.

He was one of the few photographers to receive imperial permission to document the construction of the Kiel Canal . This is how much sought-after photographs were created today.

Backen's importance remained local, also because he only chose his motifs within a narrow range. While his teacher Dreesen made himself known through the distribution of many printed albums, Backens only created two well-known albums. However, he took part in exhibitions in Rendsburg, Kiel, Flensburg and Altona and won many prizes. He received this for his versatile motifs, the qualitative production of the pictures in the dry process and sometimes for their artistic execution.

family

Backens married Luise Bornstrohm on November 17, 1883 in Meldorf (born November 17, 1853 in Meldorf; † March 13, 1939 in Marne). Her father Carl Matthias Niclas Bornstrohm (born April 21, 1811 in Meldorf; † December 18, 1893 there) worked in Meldorf as a textile merchant and master tailor. He was married to Auguste Dorothea, née Radsack (1831-1891).

The Backens couple had three sons and two daughters, the older of whom died immediately after the birth.

literature

• Jutta Müller, Karsten Schrum: Backens, Thomas . in: Biographical Lexicon for Schleswig-Holstein and Lübeck . Wachholtz, Neumünster 1982–2011. Vol. 12 - 2006. ISBN 3-529-02560-7 , pages 23-35.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Jutta Müller, Karsten Schrum: Backens, Thomas . in: Biographical Lexicon for Schleswig-Holstein and Lübeck . Wachholtz, Neumünster 1982–2011. Vol. 12 - 2006. ISBN 3-529-02560-7 , page 23.
2. ↑ Jutta Müller, Karsten Schrum: Backens, Thomas . in: Biographical Lexicon for Schleswig-Holstein and Lübeck . Wachholtz, Neumünster 1982–2011. Vol. 12 - 2006. ISBN 3-529-02560-7 , pages 23-24.
3. ↑ ^{a b c} Jutta Müller, Karsten Schrum: Backens, Thomas . in: Biographical Lexicon for Schleswig-Holstein and Lübeck . Wachholtz, Neumünster 1982–2011. Vol. 12 - 2006. ISBN 3-529-02560-7 , page 24.
4. ↑ Jutta Müller, Karsten Schrum: Backens, Thomas . in: Biographical Lexicon for Schleswig-Holstein and Lübeck . Wachholtz, Neumünster 1982–2011. Vol. 12 - 2006. ISBN 3-529-02560-7 , pages 24-25.
5. ↑ Dieter Brumm: Thomas Backens: The channel photographer . SHZ.de from June 29, 2010. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
6. ↑ Jutta Müller, Karsten Schrum: Backens, Thomas . in: Biographical Lexicon for Schleswig-Holstein and Lübeck . Wachholtz, Neumünster 1982–2011. Vol. 12 - 2006. ISBN 3-529-02560-7 , page 25.