Dans l'univers de Bruno Dumont - Local syndical CGT dans les mines vers 1988 - Photo : © Sebastien Desnoulez

Testimony from a Disappearing World – A CGT Union Office in the French Coal Basin, 1988

15 November 2025 – Categorie: Documentary Photography – Sebastien Desnoulez

Immersion in the world of Bruno Dumont, somewhere in Northern France in the late 1980s. This photograph, taken in a CGT union office in 1988, powerfully documents the last moments of a fading working-class world.

At the time, I was a freelance photographer for the Lille-based agency PAVÉ (Presse Audio Visuelle et Écrite), accompanying photographer Patrick Delecroix on a reportage in the former coal mines. A Paris-based magazine had commissioned images from one of the last social conflicts in the coal basin.

The context of a reportage in the coal mines

In 1987 or 1988, as the coal mines were shutting down one by one, social struggles continued. That day, while on a reportage in the mining region, we were invited into a CGT union office to share a coffee and talk. A poster still hanging on the wall announced a demonstration in Lens on a Saturday, April 7 — likely a powerful memory for these unionists, from a protest they may have organized or taken part in years earlier.

In the world of Bruno Dumont – CGT union office in the French coal mines around 1988 – Photo © Sebastien Desnoulez

A place frozen in time

The office in the photo remained untouched: papers pinned to the wall, union slogans, Jupiler beer bottles, petit beurre biscuits, scales, a coffee maker, megaphone, dishes… Every detail evokes the atmosphere of a modest, harsh, yet organized daily life. Soft daylight enters through the window, revealing textures, objects, and faces.

A powerful documentary photograph

Shot on film, this image captures two men in the moment. One is reading a document, the other looks directly at the lens — as if calling out to us. The scene could be taken from a film by Bruno Dumont, whose raw, unfiltered universe, deeply rooted in Northern France, resonates with this simultaneously ordinary and dramatic atmosphere.

Working-class memory and emotion

Beyond its composition, this image is both a human and political testimony. A time capsule from an era when union voices still shaped the territories and collective struggles structured daily life. The photograph doesn’t seek to embellish — it simply tells the truth.

This rare and valuable photo is part of a broader series on working-class memory and the transformations of the post-industrial era. As spaces of resistance disappear and faces fade, it gives us something to see and reflect on.

About the Author

Sebastien Desnoulez is a professional photographer specializing in architecture, landscape and travel photography. Trained in photography since the 1980s, he covered Formula 1 races and reported from around the globe before devoting himself to a more demanding fine art photography practice blending composition, light, and emotion. He shares his technical expertise through hands-on articles for passionate photographers, built on a solid background in film and digital photography.