May 11th 2013
When we first moved into our apartment in Jezyce, I noticed this contraption in the courtyard and immediately thinkingt how sad it was that the childrens playground area wasn’t finished…or worse, that it was complete, and it terrified the kids with its starkness! The newness of my environment often had me amazed, perplexed and inspired all in a single moment and details that I had no relationship to in my experience were often the ones I am most intrigued by.
Our first Spring had arrived in our new home and the chill of winter had become a distant memory as the lushness of the approaching summer began. Each morning I was leaving very early to get to our little coffee shop prepped for the day ahead while reserving a small portion of that time for explring. One morning, I noticed that somebody in the building had covered the “children’s playground” with a giant multi-colored rug. Worse still, for several weeks they left the rug blocking any possible playtime of the equipment, obviously carelessly neglecting the children’s needs.
One morning, afer weeks of passing this negligent scene, I casually took a photo of this absurdity and someones need to mar childhood fun. When I later showed the picture to my fiancée Agnieszka and explained my distress over someone’s need to wreck childhood dreams…she laughed and said “Erik, it’s a rug beating station and although not a “playground” we ALL played on them and have memories attached to it. Every apartment in Poland has one and was a common area for hanging out, meeting up and playing”. Touché.
I never had the intention of ever posting this image or sharing it with anyone. It was a simple scene that somehow connected me to my world flled with subtle differences and it was not quite the type of image I was yet comfortable sharing…it felt intimate somehow. But, at the behest of Agnieszka, I did share it…and was amazed at the incredible postitive response it recieved and connected my audience to pieces of their own past. It was then that a change occurred in how I began to document this life aroud me.
Perspective. Little adventures. Learning curves. Love letters.
Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed it. For the entire visual series, please visit here. Love Letters to Poland
Please leave a comment and let me know you were here. I love to hear your thoughts.
Erik Witsoe 