Anja Wurm - SIYU Presidium

Anja grew up in the canton of Zurich and moved to Lucerne to train as an EFZ photographer. After a few years in the city on Lake Lucerne, however, Anja decided to move back to Zurich and has been living and working there since 2021. She particularly likes the vibrancy of the city. In principle, however, she can also imagine living in another cosmopolitan city.

What attracted you to the profession of photographer? I was particularly interested in the medium. I couldn't imagine working as a photographer every day. That's why I originally only wanted to do an internship to see if this life appealed to me at all. But instead of an internship, I decided to do an apprenticeship as an EFZ photographer.

You completed your apprenticeship in 2014 at the age of 22 and have been self-employed ever since. How were you able to assert yourself as a young photographer and what appeals to you about being self-employed? The apprenticeship gave me a lot of confidence. I knew what I was doing and how the craft works. I also received a lot of support from my mentor. I wasn't banned from competing and was allowed to audition for agencies that were also his customers. Being self-employed gives me a lot of freedom in organising my everyday life. I really appreciate this freedom.

Why do you call yourself a photo artist? I like to experiment with the medium of photography and always pursue my own projects without clients.

What do you want to achieve with your pictures? I see myself as a storyteller. These stories can be invented fairy tales or researched reports. I want to make people think or, at best, enlighten and inspire them.

Your favourite colour is pink - why this colour? I don't know if it's my favourite colour. For my current project, with the working title ‘Can we go back to nature’, this aesthetic seemed the most suitable. And somehow I got stuck with it. I'm trying to transfer this aesthetic to other projects. I'm really enjoying it at the moment.

Many people don't know you without your dog? My pug Gorda has been my faithful companion since 2019. Unfortunately, I had to say goodbye to her in July this year. She was put to sleep at the age of 14 for health reasons.

You have been on the SIYU Executive Committee since June 2024, together with Marion and Charlotte. Why did this position appeal to you? I'm generally interested in politics and world affairs. I can now use this interest for our industry. It's exciting to experience for myself the environment in which we operate as photographers.

What areas are you responsible for within the SIYU Executive Committee? At the moment, we are still in the final phase of the merger. Different association cultures and administrative software have to be merged into one big whole. The Presidium is working intensively on this together with the PF. And this requires combined forces. Above all, however, we share our strengths when it comes to local meetings. As we are based in three regions, we can share the work for events and meetings across these regions.

Why is the SIYU needed? Our profession has been and continues to be heavily influenced by technological advances. We are in an exciting time and in order to have a political voice, it is important that we join forces as lone fighters. That's why we require SIYU. SIYU is a place where photographers can exchange ideas, network and educate themselves. SIYU can collect the moods and opinions of individual photographers and represent them to the outside world.