The Commuters

A Life Between Stops

Everyone’s moving.
No one’s arriving.

Framed by windows, caught in motion—these are portraits of the in-between.
Shot entirely within Vienna’s public transport system, The Commuters observes a city driven by direction, yet rarely by reflection.

Each image is a fragment.
A face between stations.
A thought suspended between departure and destination.

This series is about chasing destinations
while forgetting to ask why.

We follow routes.
We trust schedules.
We keep moving.

But momentum is not meaning.

A visual archive of a society in transit—
certain of the next stop,
uncertain of the reason.

Black and white photo of two people on opposite sides of a double-decker bus window, with a man wearing sunglasses on the left and a woman resting her head on her hand on the right.
Black and white photo of two train windows with distressed man and woman, both holding their heads.
Black and white photo of two people seen through a train window, with their reflections visible on the glass in a dark setting.
Black and white photo of two people looking out of airplane windows, with reflective surfaces, with a partial word 'VAN DER' visible on the window reflections.
Black-and-white photo of a subway train window with two women, one reading a book on the left side and the other using a mobile phone on the right side.
Black and white photo of two side-by-side train windows with elderly women looking out on the left and a woman wearing a beanie looking to the right on the right window, with the words "VAN DER BERF" faintly visible in the background.
Black and white photograph of three men's faces visible below a horizontal bar, with the text 'VAN DER WERF' partially visible in the background.
Black and white photo of two women, one wearing glasses and a knit hat, looking directly at the camera, and the other wearing glasses and looking to the side, with a laptop in front of them. They are seen through a rectangular window or screen.
Box with a black center, black and white photograph of an elderly woman in the bottom left corner, and icons of a person in different exercise positions at the bottom, with the text 'VAN DER' visible.
Black and white image of an elderly man with white hair looking down, holding a long stick, with a reflective surface below showing a man in a suit and tie.
Black and white image of a window or sign with a person's face in the lower left corner, partially visible, and the text 'VAN DER WERF' in the center.
Black and white promotional poster featuring three men's faces visible through a horizontal slit, with the text 'VAN DER WERF' at the bottom.
Black and white image of a double-decker bus with a window reflecting trees and a person.
Silhouettes of people seated on a train viewed through rain-streaked windows.
Black and white photo of five people sitting on a bus, viewed through rain-covered windows, facing each other. Two women are on the left and three men are on the right.
Black and white photo of two train windows with seated passengers, some wearing masks.
Black and white photo of four people sitting on a bus, seen through rain-streaked windows. Two people are visible on each side, facing each other, wearing winter clothing.
Black and white photo of people sitting inside a train, seen through the windows, with reflections and outdoor scenery visible.
Black-and-white photo of two people sitting on a bus or train, viewed through a rain-covered window, appearing to be in distress or deep thought.
Three people inside a rain-covered bus window, two women and one man, engaging in conversation on a rainy day.
Black and white photo of four people sitting and standing inside a train, looking through the window, with trees visible outside.
Black and white photo of a foggy, empty bus window with four stickers of children in safety seats at the bottom left corner.
View of two people sitting on a bus during a rainy day, seen through a rain-covered window.
Black and white photo of people sitting on a bus or train, viewed through the window with rain droplets, trees, and buildings outside.
A black and white photograph of two train windows, with one showing a woman sitting inside looking downward, and the other window empty.
Black and white graphic of two fish tanks with images of people in their lower corners, one on each side.
Black and white photo of four people seated separately inside a vehicle, viewed through the windows, with a minimalistic background.
Black and white digital artwork featuring a train with two windows, each with a portrait of a woman at the bottom corner.
Black and white photo of a train window with two people inside, a woman on the left looking out and a man on the right looking down.
Black and white image of two train windows, a woman with sunglasses and patterned shirt is visible through the right window, with the left window showing a dark interior.