Ansel Adams, an American photographer, said that there are no rules for good photography – there are the best photos. If you want to be sure of his words, be sure to visit the exhibition dedicated to photo studios of Zhytomyr of the XIX-XX centuries, which opened on September 11 at Gnatyuk Art Center
Men and women, children and adults – people who lived in Zhytomyr more than a hundred years ago look at us from photos. We got a great opportunity to see them thanks to photographers who once worked in Zhytomyr.
The idea to explore the topic of a photo studio in Zhytomyr arose not by chance. Last year, an exhibition of photographs by Alfred Fedetsky, an outstanding light painter born in Zhytomyr, gathered a large number of connoisseurs. However, the organizers of the exhibition, enthusiasts from Gnatyuk Art Center, NGO «Polish Student Club», Zhytomyr Vocational College of Culture and Arts named after Ivan Ogienko, were interested in: which photo studios worked in Zhytomyr in the late XIX-early XX century, how did the photo business develop, who was photographed? The search for old photos began, which was joined not only by local historians, but also ordinary Zhytomyr residents. This is how the photo treasure was found, which Zhytomyr residents can see with their own eyes today at the Gnatyuk Art Center.
Valentyna Yusupova, head of the Student Polish Club, one of the initiators of the project idea, believes that the exhibition is extremely important for the citizens: «Thanks to the exhibition, Zhytomyr residents can see what Zhytomyr really is. This is a city that has always had cultural and artistic centers, where interesting people lived. I really like this interwar calm story that we can see in the photos».
Ihor Shurpan, one of the implementers of the project, a teacher at the Ivan Ogienko Zhytomyr Vocational College of Culture and Arts, noted one of the photos that he especially liked – the image of Zhytomyr women in Ukrainian costumes. Such photos, according to Mr. Igor, testify to a kind of cultural protest, a response to the oppression of the government, which suppressed Ukrainian identity.
An understanding of the multicultural landscape of Zhytomyr was given by the story of Anton Sychevsky, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor of History of Zhytomyr State University. I. Franko. The scientist shared the results of research on the owners of the photo studio – Ukrainians, Poles, Germans, Jews, who built their business in the center of Volyn province.
The opening of the photo exhibition was graced by the story of local historian Serhiy Sobchuk, who presented photos taken in the Zhytomyr photo studio from a private collection. Each photo was accompanied by a fascinating story about the townspeople depicted in the photos. Among them were famous figures: the Moskalyov family – the mother and uncle of our prominent countryman Svyatoslav Richter; Ernest Gibber – Chief Architect of the Office of the Empress, in the 1880s the architect of the main palace administration; priest Andrzej Fedukowicz and others.
Speech by Iryna Vyshnevetska, Head of the Department of Scientific and Educational Work of the National Museum of Cosmonautics named after S.P. Koroliov, about one of the photos, was especially insightful. In one photo – the whole life of a strong woman, Stanislava Venediktovna Yaskevych (Dolmat), a woman from Zhytomyr, who survived the war, hardship, but did not lose sensitivity and humanity.
Everyone who wants to visit the exhibition will be able to see reproductions of photographs from the photo studios of Fritz Müller, photographer of the Zarembsky family, the Popkov brothers, Dubravsky, Sobkevych, Leibngartz, Dzyus, Korytsky, as well as the Sukhozanet photo studio in Zhytomyr. Thanks to light painters who lived and worked in the past, we can immerse ourselves in the secular life of the provincial city – our Zhytomyr, as it was more than a hundred years ago.
The initiators of the project believe that this is just the beginning, because studying the history of their city gives us the opportunity to better understand ourselves, get rid of thoughts about the provinciality of the city, which has always preserved cultural and artistic traditions and given the world thousands of celebrities.
French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, the forerunner of photojournalism and photojournalism, once said, «When you take a picture, it’s as if you’re writing a picture, but in one second». Maybe that’s why we are so happy with old photos: we seem to be looking at canvases, from which the echo of someone’s life reaches everywhere for centuries…
Reference Project implemented by the Fund for Assistance to Poles in the East with the support of the Prime Minister’s Office in the framework of the competition «Polonia and Poles Abroad 2021».
