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Since the last years of the 20th century, Poznań’s district Naramowice has been an area of rapidly growing investments and a model example of contemporary transformation of urban peripheries into residential areas. The sites of a... more
Since the last years of the 20th century, Poznań’s district Naramowice has been an area of rapidly growing investments and a model example of contemporary transformation of urban peripheries into residential areas. The sites of a 19th-century village and farm and a post-war gardening
company are turning into housing estates. The new district, repeatedly criticized for the lack of a well-thought-out development plan and transport solutions, finally in 2022 was connected with
a city center by a tram route.
Naramowice are the subject of a phototextual reflection in which I refer to the ambiguous status of this space, expressed in such terms as extension and redevelopment, land development, and wastelands. In conclusion, I wonder if the district can be a laboratory for the “fourth nature”
(I. Kowarik, K. Jakubowski) project or an illustration of the “third landscape” (R. Clément)? The article takes the form of a rephotographic photo essay (L. Pouwels, M. Rosler), in which images are intertwined with text fragments, in which the concepts of urban wasteland, natural thinking and contemporary urban design are discussed. The photographs I used present the changes observed during the construction of the tram route, the interference of residential investments in the areas of the former orchards in Naramowice and the projects of urban meadows between residential buildings. Made with a mobile phone, they have the character of a field note, emphasizing the role of active, mobile observation of dynamic changes in space.
Michałowska considers the thesis that an affinity between film and photography should not be sought in the linear order of the technological development of the medium but in the recalling of images by memory. Victor Burgin’s text... more
Michałowska considers the thesis that an affinity between film and photography should not be sought in the linear order of the technological development of the medium but in the recalling of images by memory. Victor Burgin’s text "The Remembered Film" and Roland Barthes’s "Upon Leaving the Movie Theatre" provide the inspiration for the article. Burgin and Barthes argue that films begin to be regarded not as a coherent narrative continuum but as a „sequence of images”. We are in the process of being “trapped by the image” whereas the viewer begins to perceive a scene recorded by the photographic or cinematic medium as if it were part of his own experience. Michałowska examines the cinematic and photographic realisations of found footage (films by Bill Morisson, Lewis Klahr, photos of Friedl Kubelka and Andrzej P. Bator). A counterpoint for these audiovisual productions is William Gibson’s novel "Pattern Recognition" (2003) about film clips circulating in the Net. Lacking narrative linearity, the video files become the source of search for identity of Net users. These examples lead to the conclusion that in modern culture, photography and film cease to constitute only a component of specific artistic practice. When absorbed by human memory, they serve to express individual experiences.
Photo-texts? Searching for a tool of analysis of contemporary documentary photography A term "photo-text" emphasizes a contemporary change in visual culture researches, where photography is a link between a photographed object... more
Photo-texts? Searching for a tool of analysis of contemporary documentary photography A term "photo-text" emphasizes a contemporary change in visual culture researches, where photography is a link between a photographed object and its cultural meaning. In a book titled “Phototextuality” Andrea Noble and Alex Hughes stated that phototextuality plays “between the culturally fabricated nature of photographic artifact and its fundamental indexality, that is, its status as a trace of the real; and evidential manifestation of what has been”. Photo-texts characterised by critical, self-reflective and intertextual attitude towards culture go together with contemporary interests with narration, memory and history. The text is divided into few parts. I consider a status of phototextuality in the first one and present basic researches on textuality of photography in the second. I compare Roland Barthes’s analysis to a John Berger’s and Jean Mohr’s project there. Part three is dedicated to visual studies, where phototextuality is a field of discussion with models of art and popular culture (on an example of Gregor Brandler work). Finally, in the fourth part a critical attitude of photo-texts towards history is presented. In conclusion, photo-texts are regarded as an effective tool of contemporary culture analysis, both on the level of its production and on “reading” level. This reading is not a “free” or “mis” –reading, that tears the meanings off the objects of reference, but rather which “anchorages” those meanings in represented object.
Photography has been associated with the specter, spirit, and the apparition ever since the theory of photography first emerged. André Bazin and Edgar Morin saw the spectral features of photography as the basis for phenomenological... more
Photography has been associated with the specter, spirit, and the apparition ever since the theory of photography first emerged. André Bazin and Edgar Morin saw the spectral features of photography as the basis for phenomenological interpretation. However, the most creative exposition of ghosts in photography is linked to Jacques Derrida’s concept of hauntology. Nowadays, hauntology is often cited in relation to nostalgia – longing for “the lost futures”. However, when Derrida wrote Specters of Marx in 1993, he was interested in the ontological repetition of ideas through history. Photographs created by two contemporary Polish photographers (Michał Grochowiak and Nicolas Grospierre) are an excellent illustration of the French philosopher’s thoughts, as their works focus on the same theme – architecture of the socialist era. The recurring specter of the past manifests itself through it. Grochowiak’s photographs from the Breath series (2010) depict the interior of the Palace of Cultur...
A review of the photographic work 'Nonsuch' created by Steffi Klenz. The subject of 'Nonsuch' is the model town of Poundbury in Dorset
The analysis of everyday practices focused on photography has always been an important element of the theoretical reflection on the media. Such a social approach can be found in the writings of classics, such as Benjamin, Sontag, Barthes,... more
The analysis of everyday practices focused on photography has always been an important element of the theoretical reflection on the media. Such a social approach can be found in the writings of classics, such as Benjamin, Sontag, Barthes, and Berger, as well as contemporary theorists. In their works one can find reflection on the cultural need to create one’s image both for oneself and for others. In theory, this problem has been formulated in different ways. It may refer to making a family album (Hirsch) or to the selfie as an “extension and enhancement of a long tradition of the self-portrait” (Mirzeoff) or to action that embodies an imagined identity, rooted in communication practices (van Dijck). The gist of those discussions is the perception of oneself and others, and the technological methods of picturing, experiencing, and distributing that perception in society. The paper presents an analysis of the evolution of cultural meanings attributed to the autobiographical memory th...
The analysis of everyday practices focused on photography has always been an important element of the theoretical reflection on the media. Such a social approach can be found in the writings of classics, such as Benjamin,... more
The  analysis  of  everyday  practices  focused  on  photography  has  always  been  an  important element of the theoretical reflection on the media. Such a social approach can be found in the writings of classics, such as Benjamin, Sontag, Barthes, and Berger, as well as contemporary theorists. In their works one can find reflection on the cultural need to create one’s image both for oneself and for others. In theory, this problem has been formulated in different ways. It may refer to making a family album (Hirsch) or to the selfie as an “extension and enhancement of a long tradition of the self-portrait” (Mirzeoff) or to action that embodies an imagined identity, rooted in communication practices  (van  Dijck).  The  gist  of  those  discussions  is  the  perception  of  oneself  and  others,  and  the  technological  methods  of  picturing,  experiencing,  and  distributing  that perception in society. The paper presents an analysis of the evolution of cultural meanings attributed to the autobiographical memory that affects the concept of iden-tity.  Photobiographies  can  be  placed  between  two  extremes:  the  nineteenth-century  belief that “photography cannot flatter,” remembered by Douwe Draaisma, and con-temporary picture-editing programs. José van Dijck argues that contemporary digital pictures are usually “living” since they can be endlessly modified. The paper has been divided into two parts. One is a short survey of qualitative methods, based on photo-graphy  and  the  idea  of  the  autobiographical  memory.  The  other  presents  biographical artistic practices of Krzysztof Pruszkowski, Nancy Burson, Marek Lalko, and Josef Klammer, as well as autobiographical Internet production (e.g., selfie and time-lapse photography). The conclusion is that the digital media have changed the status of the autobiographical memory by mediatizing its presence in reality.
The essay explores the reasons for the popularity of Vilém Flusser’s ideas on media and history in Polish photography at the end of 20th century. Flusser’s concepts fit perfectly into the thinking about photographic images, which in the... more
The essay explores the reasons for the popularity of Vilém Flusser’s ideas on media and history in Polish photography at the end of 20th century. Flusser’s concepts fit perfectly into the thinking about photographic images, which in the 1990s became the leading trend in Central and Eastern Europe. The philosopher’s comments on the “creative gesture” of the photographer, the concept of the universe of technical images, and, above all, the freedom of the artist found a positive response among artists whose art originated in conceptual, performative and “expanded photography” approaches, and created a good foundation for cooperation between artists and academics. Such approaches towards photography gave rise to intermedia photography, which expanded the boundaries of the medium, drawing attention to its formal and socio-cultural context. Furthermore, the paper focuses on photographical case studies by two Polish artists who actively employed Flusser’s vision of media in their art: Stefan Wojnecki and Piotr Wołyński.
In the seminal text from 1982, Rosalind Krauss wrote about the discursive spaces of photography. She stated that varied interpretations of landscape photography depend on the image circulation. The new topography; in photography provides... more
In the seminal text from 1982, Rosalind Krauss wrote about the discursive spaces of photography. She stated that varied interpretations of landscape photography depend on the image circulation. The new topography; in photography provides in artistic language data on the situation of the natural environment. Therefore, it is not just a matter of changing fields of discourses but narratives through which discourses are created. In the paper I discuss the narrative contexts of photography, in regard to Krauss's concept of discourse and narratology by Mieke Bal. Examples are modern landscape photography in the new topography style. The goal of this artistic movement, which can be dated to the mid-1970s is to document and reflect on changes that occur in the environment through human activities (mainly related to industry). Today, however, artists' voices are increasingly commenting on climate change and environmental disaster. Therefore, these are activities that can ...
""Pleasant Lightness of Photography, Part 1 – the Pleasures of Body Photography today is for its users mainly a source of different kinds of delights. Some of them are entailed by a nice view, pleasant... more
""Pleasant Lightness of Photography, Part 1 – the Pleasures of Body Photography today is for its users mainly a source of different kinds of delights. Some of them are entailed by a nice view, pleasant memories or community feeling. However, contemporary theory of photography seldom is interested on simple pleasures of images. Researchers are focused on political, historical or sociological aspects of image, but an audience mostly seeks for visual attraction within pictures. The text is an analysis of various pleasures experienced through photographs. There might be the pleasure found in writing and reading of photoblogs, the visual delight found in nature photography or a sophisticated satisfaction caused by literary and cinematic connotations. In the late 90. Italo Calvino introduced a concept of “lightness of literature” that is contrasted to the “heavy” texts. The first, expressed with italian word la gravitá, the gravity mixed with irony, the second makes the language material and solid. Regarding to Calvino’s “lightness” I present photography as joyful, eye-catching and delightful. The text emphasis an importance of sensual experience in everyday photographic practices: the pleasure felt while walking the city, watching the nature photography or experiencing the photochemical process in the darkroom.""
The text reflects on photographic methods of documenting the city. The paper is parted into four sections: the first presents the issues surrounding documenting, the second discusses historical examples of urban documentary, the third... more
The text reflects on photographic methods of documenting the city. The paper is parted into four sections: the first presents the issues surrounding documenting, the second discusses historical examples of urban documentary, the third analyses the modern tendency of construction and, finally, the last section introduces examples of contemporary art practice. Written with regard to the concepts of Francois Soulages I will discuss, among others, the following projects: The Inventory (Inwentaryzacja) by Ireneusz Zjezdzalka, A Sky over Warsaw by Juliusz Sokolowski and The Other City (Inne miasto) by Wojciech Wilczyk and Elzbieta Janicka. All examples focus on different aspects of documentation: they allow preserving in a viewer’s mind the lost past, create a contra-image of a city or reveal the unseen and forgotten fragments of history.
In this article, I consider the reception of images that are present in a city space. I focus on the juxtaposition of computer ‐generated images covering fences surrounding construction sites and the real spaces which they screen from... more
In this article, I consider the reception of images that are present in a city space. I focus on the juxtaposition of computer ‐generated images covering fences surrounding construction sites and the real spaces which they screen from view. I postulate that a visual experience is dependent on input from the other human senses. While looking at objects, we are not only standing in front of them but are being influenced by them. Seeing does not leave a physical trace on the object; instead the interference is more subtle — it influences the way in which we perceive space. Following in the footsteps of Sarah Pink, Michael Taussig and William J. T. Mitchell, I show that seeing (to paraphrase the title of an article by the last of the above mentioned scholars) is a cultural practice. The last part of the article presents a visual essay as a method that can contribute to cultural urban studies. I give as an example of such a method a photo ‐essay about chosen construction sites in Poznań,...
DOI 10.24917/20837275.9.4.6W artykule analizowane są sposoby reprezentacji miejskiego krajobrazu w fotografii. Stawiam tezę, że chociaż przestrzeń zasadniczo jest nieruchoma, to można mówić o postrzeżeniu jej jako ruchomej w czasie oraz... more
DOI 10.24917/20837275.9.4.6W artykule analizowane są sposoby reprezentacji miejskiego krajobrazu w fotografii. Stawiam tezę, że chociaż przestrzeń zasadniczo jest nieruchoma, to można mówić o postrzeżeniu jej jako ruchomej w czasie oraz środkami fotografii można podzielić się z innymi doświadczeniem mobilności. Tekst składa się z pięciu części: z wprowadzenia, w którym analizuję znaczenia terminu „mobilny pejzaż”, oraz z czterech interpretacji, zainspirowanych fotografiami reprezentatywnymi dla przemian zachodzących w obszarze fotograficznego medium. Są to kolejno: widoki miast Charlesa Marville’a i Karola Beyera, fotomontaże Edwarda Steichena i Harry’ego Callahana, fotografie mobilne (portal Grupamobilni.pl), oraz projekt oparty na aplikacji mobilnych (Amsterdam REALTIME). Proponowane tu refleksje nie dostarczą wyczerpującej wiedzy o mobilnym pejzażu miasta, lecz, mam nadzieję, mogą stać się początkiem takiej analizy.Mobile landscapes. City in motion or motion in a city?An article ...
This text is an attempt to analyze the works of a selection of contemporary artistic photographers (including Weronika Łodzińska, Reiko Imoto and Todda Hido) from the perspective of sociology and visual anthropology. The first is... more
This text is an attempt to analyze the works of a selection of contemporary artistic photographers (including Weronika Łodzińska, Reiko Imoto and Todda Hido) from the perspective of sociology and visual anthropology. The first is represented by the texts of Pierre Bourdieu as well as John Tagg, while the latter by Hans Belting and Gaston Bachelard. The author examines the photographic manner of picturing society and the cultural identity of the subjects — from the typical studio portrait through social projects (August Sander) to contemporary documentary photography in which the identity of the individual and their social position is shown without the presence of a model (Candida Höfer).
In this chapter I describe the influence of Vilém Flusser's media theory on the development of the artistic movement of Polish Intermedia Photography in Poland, with particular emphasis on the reception of the philosopher's thoughts at... more
In this chapter I describe the influence of Vilém Flusser's media theory on the development of the artistic movement of Polish Intermedia Photography in Poland, with particular emphasis on the reception of the philosopher's thoughts at the University of the Arts in Poznań. I present both the works of the most influential representatives of the movement: Jerzy Olek, Stefan Wojnecki, Piotr Wołyński and its successors like Agnieszka Antkowiak.
In myths and fables, ice and snow are usually considered in the context of death and fear. Nevertheless, ice and snow also are children’s playground. Also, they can be used by artists as sculpting material. From 2006, Max Seibald, Anna... more
In myths and fables, ice and snow are usually considered
in the context of death and fear. Nevertheless, ice
and snow also are children’s playground. Also, they can
be used by artists as sculpting material. From 2006, Max
Seibald, Anna Maria Kramm and a group of sound-andlight
specialists cooperate on different projects in Austrian
Alps entitled ‘Ice Camp’. They work from November to
the end of January. It is both commercial and art series
of projects financed by big corporations. In 2013, they
used over sixty tons of ice in order to built four igloos.
The combined space in igloos is used as hotel interior
for winter sports enthusiasts. Seibald is a sculptor and
he is interested in working in open spaces. Last year,
he produced a project entitled ‘Aurora’ which included
lighted ice columns. This year, he is working on a project
entitled ‘Observatory’ which includes images of planets
and astronomical calculations.
The article discusses three photographic projects presenting transition and border areas: documentation of the course of the Warta entitled 808.2 km by Waldemar Śliwczyński, Jedynka (No. 1) by Maciej Rawluk and Urodzaj (The Harvest) by... more
The article discusses three photographic projects presenting transition and border areas: documentation of the course of the Warta entitled 808.2 km by Waldemar Śliwczyński, Jedynka (No. 1) by Maciej Rawluk and Urodzaj (The Harvest) by Michał Woroniak.
Each of the chosen case studies interprets differently the assumptions of "new topography" in photography – a trend interested in showing a man-altered landscape. Photographers' works relate to landscape studies, disputes over new theoretical proposals such as anthropocene and capitalocene, as well as to issue of periphery. Forgotten peripheries in the geography of Poland are Warta river, road No. 91, dominated by the A1 motorway become a symbol of the depleted, abandoned memory. In turn, Urodzaj presents the circumstances of the creation of an open-cast mine in the agricultural area and refers to both possible damage to the area and its social benefit for inhabitants.
In contemporary visual culture, the subject of climate change and the need for commitment to counteract it (Demos, 2016; Körber et al., 2017; Tsing et al., 2017) are increas- ingly being addressed. The artists’ observation concerns not... more
In contemporary visual culture, the subject of climate change and the need for commitment to counteract it (Demos, 2016; Körber et al., 2017; Tsing et al., 2017) are increas- ingly being addressed. The artists’ observation concerns not only the natural effects of climate change but also their impact on the social and cultural heritage of the inhabitants of regions of the most endangered areas. Areas most vulnerable to destruction: oceans, coral reefs and po- lar regions are becoming a particular subject of interest for artists. A reflection of this interest can be the increasing number of exhibitions devoted to the current state of the environment (i.e. the project Plasticity of the Planet presented in 2019 in Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art in Warsaw). In the article selected artistic strategies to publicize the problems of ecology will be indicated. The first strategy is the exhibition of the beauty of the natural environment and the melancholy associated with its disappearance. An example of this can be Art of the Arctic by environmental photographer Kerry Koeping who focuses the audience’s attention on ocean literacy by means of affecting landscapes of the Arctic or the artistic residence in PAN Hornsund Polar Station of Janusz Oleksa. The second way is to indicate the physical and biological effects of climate change. An example would be the work of Kelly Jazvac who, in collaboration with an oceanog- rapher Charles Moore and a geologist Patricia Corcoran, presents plastiglomerate by Agnieszka Kurant —new forms of fossils, resulting from the combination of shells and stones with plastics or artificial compounds. The third method is the presentation of the residents’ experience. The examples are works of Subhankar Banerjee, who draws inspiration from ethnographic research
and documentary films and Jakub Witek’s documentary about Polish emigrants living in Iceland. The artist presents the consequences of climate change for the inhabitants of the polar regions. The fourth way is to build a metaphor for the presence of a ‘stranger’ — a traveller,
an explorer or a scientist. An example is a photographic performance entitled Polaris Summer by Kuba Bąkowski conducted during a scientific expedition to Spitsbergen, or three-screen projection by John Akomfrah’s showing the relationship between man and oceans in the context
of exploitation of natural and human resources.
For the artistic practices described in the article, I use the theoretical framework of environmental art that binds together aesthetics, ethics and politics. The purpose of the article is to check whether such a connection can be attractive to the audience.
In the essay, I analyze the motives of immortality presented in popular commercial productions (including the example of Altered Carbon and Westworld series, as well as films from the 80s of the last century). The most frequently used... more
In the essay, I analyze the motives of immortality presented in popular commercial productions (including the example of Altered Carbon and Westworld series, as well as films from the 80s of the last century). The most frequently used aspects are: immortality as a result of a technological experiment, immortality as a source of social
inequalities, a dispute over the construction of human identity; as well as immortality as loneliness. In each of these examples, these productions raise questions about the value of human life and the price that humanity pays for survival. In conclusion, I put forward the thesis that in popular culture, immortality refers above all to the constant migration of meanings, threads and technologies.
In the article I put forward the thesis that the specificity of photography lies in its dynamic wandering from one physical carrier to another, and between varied technological platforms. Walter Benjamin emphasized this feature of the... more
In the article I put forward the thesis that the specificity of photography lies in its dynamic wandering from one physical carrier to another, and between varied technological platforms. Walter Benjamin emphasized this feature of the medium in the 1930s in his concept reproduction. Contemporary theory of a culture of convergence (by Henry Jenkins), allows to look at the concept that proclaims the ability of a photographic image to wander between the media in a new way. Following the footsteps of Walter Benjamin, Henry Jenkins and Vilém Flusser, I intend to look at media modulations in three areas: artistic creation based on photography (the example of Iranian Film Stills by Aneta Grzeszykowska), object art (in the works by Konrad Kuzyszyn) and in amateur and often anonymous mobile photography practices.

And 34 more

The book Uncertainty of representation: from camera obscura to contemporary photography proposes a cultural interpretation of pinhole photography, a technique which was particularly popular at the turn of the 20th and 21st century. Why I... more
The book Uncertainty of representation: from camera obscura to contemporary photography proposes a cultural interpretation of pinhole photography, a technique which was particularly popular at the turn of the 20th and 21st century. Why I became interested in this specific photographic genre? Nothing gets older more quickly than technology. Nevertheless, the object of the analysis presented in the book – pinhole photography was old (or ancient) already in the moment of its invention. Might this be a reason why pinhole photography even today does not seem to be out of date. This direct successor of camera obscura, due to its aesthetical values (David Brewster rated highly in pinhole images some pictorial effects as lack of sharpness, which made the image more poetical), became the part of art discourse in 19th century. The advent of modern era in art marginalized pinholes for some time, but in the late 20th century the sudden fascination with lensless images thrived again together with the cultural and artistic activities of artists and theoreticians, who saw in photography not a mimetic reproduction of reality, but an image full of symbolic meanings and self-referential reflection on the language of medium. Such interpretation let artists like Gottfried Jäger, Paolo Gioli and, last but not least, the author of a seminal book on pinhole photography Eric Renner, come back to the basis of technological history of modern vision. The great interest of both experienced artists and young adepts of photography was influenced by the number of pinhole exhibitions also in Poland (by authors, whose artworks are the objects of interpretation in this book, such as Wiktor Nowotka, Paweł Borkowski, Piotr Zabłocki, Magdalena Poprawska, Zbigniew Tomaszczuk, Piotr Wołyński, Marek Noniewicz, Katarzyna Majak, Jarosław Klupś, Georgia Krawiec, Paweł Kula, Stefan Wojnecki and others). Digital era brought new possibilities for pinhole and it is still a medium of communication which negotiates memories, creates feeling of closeness, or expresses longing for a distanced object of desire.