pete john portrays people who give old things new value: by repairing them, by upcycling them or by turning them into art.

Each work consists of three parts:

A video work: the real working process is filmed from a fixed camera position and later condensed into one minute. Hours become a minute.

A series of eight analogue Polaroids showing you and the object, in the middle of the work.

And your quote: what this thing means to you, in your words.

Only the person doing the work is visible. The object's own story is present nonetheless: in its traces of use and in the decision not to throw it away.

Because the time is spent twice.

Once by you: you decide to put hours into an object that could simply have been replaced.

And a second time by the viewers: they take time for a work about exactly that decision.

Afterwards the object carries two stories within it — its own and yours.

We live in an environment where replacing is almost always cheaper than keeping — measured in money. Measured in time it never is.

The project asks:

What is an object worth once a person has put their time into it — and what does that decision say about the person?

The actual work is neither the film nor the Polaroid. It is the moment in which it becomes visible that value does not depend on price but on time given.

No.

It has to succeed, but it does not have to be a repair. Three paths belong here equally:

• Repair — the object becomes usable again.
• Upcycling — something with a new function emerges from the old.
• Art — something emerges from the material that has no purpose beyond itself.

What matters is not the category but that in the end something exists that did not exist before — and that you spent your time on it.

Yes. That is a deliberate decision.

This project is not a documentary about failure. It is a work about time given that leads somewhere.

That is why we establish together, before the first recording, whether your plan is realistically achievable. We select what can succeed and accompany the way there — instead of leaving the question open in the contract.

If something goes wrong anyway, that is not a breach of contract and costs you neither your fee nor your standing. We then talk about whether there is a second attempt.

Exactly eight.

The number comes from the work itself: the central work form is the sequence of eight selected Polaroids, with a total edition of eight. Eight people with eight images each make up the completed series.

A place only counts as taken once the recordings have actually happened — not with the application or the signed contract.

No. WORTH THE TIME. TWICE. is an independent project with its own series, its own catalogue of works and its own rules.

What connects pete john's projects is the compensation, the sales participation, the work forms and the principle that nobody is surprised. The subject and the process belong to each project — what is written here applies here.

Adults aged 18 or over.

Professional and private alike: shoemakers, tailors, watchmakers, restorers, bicycle mechanics, electronics tinkerers, furniture builders — and equally people who never learned any of it and do it anyway.

No craft training is required. Neither is modelling experience, a particular appearance or a particular body type.

You have to be good enough for it to succeed. Nothing more.

The project is not looking for masterpieces but for people who visibly know what they are doing — and to whom it means something.

On the object, the plan, the place and the person.

Preference goes to plans that visibly change something, and to people who can convey that without explaining it. And to those who move through the application process quickly: free places are decided by recordings actually completed, not by contracts.

Eight places, considerably more applications — a rejection does not mean your plan is worthless.

Where you really work: workshop, kitchen table, cellar, garage, studio, back room.

The place has to be accessible and is allowed to look used — tidying up is explicitly not required. If you need someone else's permission for the place, you have to obtain it in advance.

The first works are being made in Cologne, Münster and the surrounding area. Locations further away are possible but need more planning.

Something old, damaged or worn out that continues through you.

It does not have to be a valuable piece. A patched work boot can carry more than a restored grandfather clock. What matters is that a decision stands behind it: this thing will not be replaced.

Unsuitable are things where nothing visible happens, and things whose treatment nobody should see on camera.

No.

The project acquires no rights to the object and does not keep it. It stays where it was and goes on its way.

The work is made from the recordings, not from the thing.

That is your business and stays that way.

Whether you sell, give away or keep the repaired, upgraded or newly created piece afterwards changes nothing in the agreement. The project's sales participation concerns only the artworks made from the recordings — not the object itself.

Only the essentials: name, date of birth, contact details, postal code and city, which object and which plan, a current selfie — and your consent to being filmed and photographed as part of the project.

It takes about two minutes. Detailed information is only requested if your application is selected.

No, but it is quick.

Each project has its own application and its own number. Your identity verification carries over; a second ID check is not needed.

What you fill in afresh is the substance: which object, which plan, what it means to you.

No.

The application is an expression of interest. It is not an image release, not a booking and not a contract.

You only decide after you have seen the complete information and the agreement.

Because pete john reviews every application personally and wants to see a person in front of him, not a row of data.

No professional photo is needed: recent, unedited, face clearly visible. The selfie is not published and not shared.

Not in the short application — it is meant to stay short.

As soon as you have a portal account you can send images and interim states there. For a plan that runs over weeks this is genuinely helpful: the state beforehand cannot be recreated later.

You receive an automatic confirmation with your number and portal access. All further communication runs through that portal.

Every application receives a decision. If you are selected, identity confirmation, all details, the agreement and a personal conversation follow — in that order and always before the first recording.

You work. The camera stands still.

The working process is filmed from a fixed position — no camera moves, no direction, no repetition for a better angle. Later it is condensed into one minute.

The Polaroids are made alongside. For those pete john interrupts briefly, because a Polaroid is a single, unrepeatable exposure.

Both are possible — it depends on your plan.

Some things are done in one appointment. Others need several, because something has to dry, cure, rest or be fitted. Then the recordings happen at the points where something actually changes.

How many appointments it will be is established before the first one. You will not be surprised.

Camera time is designed for about 60 minutes in total, spread over one or several visits.

If your plan needs considerably more, that is agreed in writing before the first appointment — including how it is compensated.

Not during the recording. The film has no commentary.

What remains of you in words is a single sentence: what this thing means to you. It comes from what you write to us or say on site — you do not have to prepare anything or learn anything by heart.

The choice of that sentence rests with pete john, as does the choice of images.

Then it is in the film.

That is precisely the point: nothing is restaged and nothing is prettified. A corrected mistake is often the best minute of the material.

The film is not cosmetically edited — it is shortened and condensed, not beautified.

The Polaroids are analogue originals. Whatever the chemistry does, stays. Editions, emulsion works and other physical works can be made from the original material afterwards; that is part of the artistic process and not retouching of your person.

Yes.

Fully completed participation is paid with a guaranteed fee:

€50

The fee covers participation in the video work, in the Polaroids and the usage rights agreed in the signed contract. It applies regardless of whether a work is sold later.

In addition, a 10% sales participation is possible during the first three years — see SALES COMMISSION DURING THE FIRST THREE YEARS.

No. The €50 covers participation as a whole — whether your plan is finished in one appointment or needs several.

That is deliberate: how many appointments are needed is not fixed at the start and can change along the way. A fee per appointment would shift that decision from the work to the money.

The fee becomes due once the agreed participation has been completed and the contractual conditions have been met.

Payment method and date are stated in the participation agreement. No recording takes place without a previously signed agreement.

No.

Materials, spare parts and tools are yours to cover. It is your plan, and the result stays with you.

There is no reimbursement — not for individual items and not by prior arrangement either. If your plan needs expensive material, say so early: then we look together at whether it is the right plan for this project.

Not paid: completing the application, preliminary conversations and messages, travel time and travel costs, materials, spare parts and tools, personal preparation, clothing, preparing or cleaning the location, obtaining permission for the location, and the time spent reviewing the project information and the agreement.

In addition to the payment, participants receive:

• one signed A2 Participant Proof of one selected work,
• a link to the published video work,
• advance notice of the first publication,
• optional public identification by full name, first name, pseudonym or no name,
• optional credit of a public social-media profile, if appropriate for the presentation.

Publication does not guarantee a particular number of views, followers, press reports or exhibition opportunities.

Yes.

In addition to the guaranteed fee, the participant receives a limited sales commission during the first three years after the first fee credit note.

The commission is:

10% of the contractually defined Net Artist Proceeds

The commission applies to eligible physical artworks featuring the participant and sold during the 36-month participation period.

There is no fixed upper limit on the total commission during those three years.

There is also no guarantee that a work will be sold.

The commission period begins on the day on which the first credit note for the fee is issued, and runs for exactly:

36 months

Example:

If the credit note is issued on 15 September 2026, the commission period ends on 14 September 2029.

Only eligible sales contractually completed within that period generate a commission.

No participant commission is paid on sales completed after the 36-month period.

This also applies when the artwork:

• was produced during the three years,
• was exhibited during the three years,
• appeared online during the three years,
• or was already offered for sale during the three years,

but was not actually sold until after the commission period ended.

The artwork may continue to be offered and sold after the three-year period.

The commission applies only to eligible primary sales of physical artworks featuring the participant.

These may include:

• open-edition A2 posters,
• signed and numbered A2 Fine Art Prints,
• printed sequences or collages,
• original Polaroids,
• Polaroid emulsion transfers,
• physically deconstructed Polaroids,
• and other unique physical works created from the original analog material.

The exact eligible work categories are listed in the participation agreement.

No additional participant commission is paid for:

• the digital smartphone film,
• website publication,
• Instagram, TikTok, Facebook or YouTube,
• social-media views or advertising revenue,
• press coverage,
• interviews,
• exhibitions,
• admission fees,
• art fairs,
• sponsorship,
• project funding,
• awards,
• lectures,
• television or documentary coverage,
• books,
• exhibition catalogues,
• artist monographs,
• work catalogues,
• invitations,
• postcards,
• general project advertising,
• or other publicity for pete john and the project.

These uses are covered by the guaranteed fee and the rights granted in the signed agreement.

No.

Books, exhibition catalogues, artist publications and work catalogues do not create a separate participant commission, even if an image of the participant appears in them.

The 10% commission is limited to the eligible physical individual artworks and editions defined in the contract.

No.

There is no additional compensation for:

• views,
• likes,
• followers,
• advertising revenue,
• platform bonuses,
• shares,
• reposts,
• or other social-media performance.

The digital film is part of the public and freely accessible side of the project.

No.

The participant commission applies only to the first eligible sale by pete john or an authorised primary-market sales partner during the 36-month period.

A later resale by a collector, dealer or auction house does not create an additional participant payment.

The exact definition is contained in the participation agreement.

The intended calculation is the amount actually received by pete john from the eligible artwork sale, excluding or deducting items such as:

• value-added tax,
• refunds,
• discounts,
• chargebacks,
• gallery commissions,
• dealer or agency commissions,
• marketplace fees,
• payment-processing fees,
• directly attributable production costs,
• framing and packaging costs,
• and transport or insurance costs paid by pete john.

General business overhead and pete john's own working time are not deducted unless expressly stated otherwise in the agreement.

The participant receives 10% of the remaining Net Artist Proceeds.

The price list at project launch:

Prices may be changed by pete john as the market, production costs, gallery representation and artistic career develop.

The participant's percentage remains based on the contractually defined Net Artist Proceeds rather than the public list price.

For simple orientation, 10% of the current listed prices would be:

The freely accessible video work is not for sale and does not generate a commission.

These figures show the basic percentage only.

The actual participant commission may be lower because it is calculated from Net Artist Proceeds after the contractual deductions, not automatically from the displayed retail price.

The following examples are illustrations only and do not guarantee any sales or income.

Example 1: No work is sold

• Guaranteed fee: €50
• Sales commission: €0
• Total participant income: €50

Example 2: Two edition prints of the Sequence of Eight are sold

Assumed Net Artist Proceeds per print: €520

• Two sales: €1,040 Net Artist Proceeds
• Participant share at 10%: €104
• Guaranteed fee: €50
• Total participant income: €154

Example 3: Posters, edition prints and the unique emulsion work are sold

Assumed eligible sales during the 36-month period:

• 100 posters with €25 Net Artist Proceeds each: €2,500
• 6 edition prints with €520 Net Artist Proceeds each: €3,120
• 1 unique emulsion work with €1,700 Net Artist Proceeds: €1,700

Total Net Artist Proceeds:

€2,500 + €3,120 + €1,700 = €7,320

Participant commission:

10% of €7,320 = €732

Including the guaranteed fee:

€732 + €50 = €782 total participant income

This is only an example. Actual income may be lower, higher or limited to the guaranteed €50.

Yes.

Up to eight selected Polaroids may be developed into different physical works.

A participant may therefore generate commissions from more than one image, edition or unique work, provided that the sales:

• fall within the eligible categories,
• are completed during the 36-month period,
• and meet the contractual requirements.

There is no promise that every selected Polaroid will be produced or sold.

The commission is calculated annually by calendar year.

The participant receives an annual statement showing:

• eligible works sold,
• the relevant Net Artist Proceeds,
• the 10% participant share,
• and any necessary adjustments.

The annual statement and payment are intended to be issued within the first quarter of the following calendar year.

A final statement is issued after the 36-month commission period has ended.

If no eligible work is sold, no sales commission is due for that year.

The participant may receive a zero statement confirming that no eligible commission-generating sale occurred.

The guaranteed €50 fee is not affected.

A sale is counted when:

• a binding sale of an eligible physical artwork has been completed during the 36-month period,
• and the corresponding payment has been received by pete john.

If payment is made in instalments, the timing and calculation are governed by the participation agreement.

No final commission is earned from a sale that is cancelled, refunded or not paid.

If a commission has already been paid and the artwork is later returned or refunded, the corresponding amount may be offset against a later statement, as described in the agreement.

No.

Only the €50 fee is guaranteed after the agreed recordings have been completed in accordance with the contract.

The additional 10% depends entirely on whether eligible physical artworks are sold during the first 36 months after the first fee credit note.

The project does not promise:

• a particular number of artworks,
• a particular number of sales,
• a minimum sales value,
• or a minimum commission.

The participant is responsible for clarifying and declaring the personal tax treatment of the fee and sales commissions.

pete john records payments and may request the information required for lawful accounting.

The project does not provide individual tax advice.

pete john is the author and rights holder of the photographs and films he creates.

The physical Polaroids and other original materials remain the property of pete john unless an individual artwork is sold to a collector.

The participant receives the agreed fee and the sales participation, but no copyright in the recordings. The treated object is unaffected.

Before the first recording the participant signs an agreement granting pete john the rights required to publish, exhibit, reproduce, print, promote, distribute, sell, archive, process within the defined artistic process and commercially exploit the agreed works.

The rights may also be exercised through galleries, museums, printers, publishers, platforms, press partners, dealers and other service providers involved in presenting or selling the project.

No.

pete john makes the final artistic and commercial selection from the material created during the agreed recordings. Up to eight Polaroids may be selected for use.

The participant receives no contractual right to determine the selected images, reject individual images, approve crops, collages, sequences or the final print design, set the sale price or approve the buyer.

No, a separate approval process is not planned — neither for individual images nor for the quote.

The decision to participate is taken beforehand — based on the complete project description, examples of the intended visual language, this FAQ, the usage and compensation terms and the signed agreement.

The agreement is intended to grant long-term usage and exploitation rights — without an ordinary, no-cause right of withdrawal or veto over individual images.

A later change of personal preference does not automatically oblige pete john to remove published works, withdraw editions, contact collectors or buy back sold works.

Mandatory statutory rights that cannot legally be excluded remain unaffected.

On petejohn.net, in social media, in online project archives, in exhibitions, galleries, museums, at art fairs, in press reports, interviews, documentary formats, books, catalogues, on invitations, in advertising for the project, in collector presentations and as physical artworks sold to private or institutional collectors.

The video work is intended to be publicly and freely accessible online.

Yes — it is the subject.

If it carries something pointing back to another person — a name plate, an engraving, a monogram — we discuss beforehand whether it stays visible.

No.

The participant can neither select nor exclude individual buyers, collectors, galleries, museums or institutions.

Once a physical work has been lawfully sold it belongs to the purchaser, who may exhibit or resell it within the limits of applicable law.

No.

The application, selfie, contact details and location information are used to review and organise possible participation.

They are not automatically published.

Processing and storage are governed by the Privacy Policy on petejohn.net.

WhatsApp provides a practical way to contact selected applicants and coordinate the next stage.

Your number is used for project-related communication and is not published as part of the artwork.

You may also request communication by email.

The initial application does not require your complete street address.

If selected, the exact location may be needed to organise the session.

The finished work may identify the city or general location, but a complete private address is not intended to be published unless separately and expressly agreed.

Not every application can become part of the project.

A rejection does not mean that your appearance, body or activity is unsuitable in general. Selection depends on the artistic development and balance of the current series.

Application data is handled according to the Privacy Policy and the applicable retention rules.

All communication takes place through the portal on petejohn.net: register for free and ask your questions directly to pete john — you will receive the reply in the portal.

Selected applicants can clarify the complete information and the agreement there before an appointment is confirmed.

No session should take place while essential questions remain unanswered.

With the short initial application you are merely expressing interest.

If you are selected and later sign the participation agreement, you should have understood that:

• the real working process is filmed from a fixed position and condensed into one minute,
• up to eight Polaroids may be selected for use,
• pete john makes the final choice of images and of the published quote,
• the plan is meant to succeed and its feasibility is established together beforehand,
• materials, spare parts and tools are yours to cover and there is no reimbursement,
• the works may be published and sold commercially,
• you receive a guaranteed fee of €50 for participation as a whole
• and you receive 10% of eligible Net Artist Proceeds for sales completed during the first 36 months after the first fee credit note.

The additional sales participation is a genuine earning opportunity — but not guaranteed income.