Temple Road

On the outskirts of Frankfurt, within an ordinary industrial district, a quiet threshold opens once a week. For a brief span of time, a hidden world emerges between repair shops, office buildings, and a large meat-processing factory. What remains unnoticed during workdays becomes a place of gathering on Sundays, as people from many backgrounds arrive and the area begins to shift in rhythm and meaning.

Along a single block, Hindu temples, mosques, and numerous independent Christian congregations stand side by side, each carrying its own language of belief. While the district is defined by labor and logistics during the week, the weekend introduces another presence, shaped by prayer, music, celebration, and quiet assembly.

From the outside, these places remain almost indistinguishable from their surroundings. The buildings appear austere, functional, and closed, blending seamlessly into the utilitarian character of the area. Inside, however, communities carefully construct their own spiritual environments. Through fabrics, altars, colors, and improvised structures, interiors become temples formed within the neutral shells of warehouses.

Largely invisible to the wider city, these congregations have moved toward the outskirts as rising rents reshape where faith can be practiced. Amid this unlikely setting, diverse presences coexist across religions, languages, and nationalities.

Rather than depicting the services themselves, the photographs attend to the subtle moments in which the place releases its temporary intensity. They follow the traces that remain in rooms, objects, and improvised interiors: quiet witnesses to recurring encounters. The work observes these marks of presence, revealing how, for a limited time each week, this overlooked industrial landscape is inhabited, shared, and gently transformed.

Josefine Rauch took part in Leipzig Photobook Festival Portfolio Review with our Managing Editor Ilaria Sponda.