Waldemar Śliwczyński

808,2 km

I visited nearly all the major towns along the Warta River with my camera, starting from its source in Zawiercie-Kromołów and ending at its confluence with the Odra River in Kostrzyn nad Odrą. When I began this project, my primary goal was to get to know the river and form a connection with it. I was particularly interested in how people "use" the river, how they develop its banks, and how they transform the landscape. My intention was simply to document "how things are," rather than to elicit admiration or exclamations like "what a beautiful place!" Therefore, I adopted a "scientific" approach: systematic and deliberate observation and recording of the scenes I encountered, avoiding any aestheticization. I used exclusively analog techniques and technology: a wooden large-format camera with 5x7 inch film, black-and-white photosensitive material, and manual processing in a traditional darkroom. I personally handled the

Waldemar Śliwczyński

Waldemar Śliwczyński

Born in 1958, publisher and editor-in-chief of "Kwartalnik Fotografia" (2000-2012, 2022- ) and "Wiadomości Wrzesińskie" (1990-2020). His books - ‘Silence’ (2008), “Topography of Silence”. (2012) and "808.2 km" (2015) won awards in national competitions for the Photography Publication of the Year. In 2022, his memories from the time when he published and edited "Wiadomości Wrzesińskie" were published - the book is titled „In my opinion". In 2018, the National Museum in Poznań published his book "Forgotten heritage. Farmstead architecture of Wielkopolska". The first curator of the Września Collection, on June 1, 2022, he launched the website kwartalnikfotografia.pl, and then reactivated the "Kwartalnik Fotografia" in printed form. He is a graduate of cultural studies and philosophy at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. He publishes texts in scientific publications on photography, and is a member of the Association of Polish Art Photographers. He established the Września Collection and was its curator for the first 6 editions. He lives in Września. He uses the classic, analogue photographic process, large-format bellows cameras, and a panoramic camera.

Exhibition Availability

Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic, European Centre for the Arts, Brick Gallery, Odeska 1 St.; exhibition open 26.09-03.11.2024, Tues.-Wed. 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m, Thurs-Sun. 11:30-19:00