In front of me and now in front of you as well there are about seventy memories from someone’s journey. In front of us there is a part of someone’s life in a precise moment, SOMEWHERE, years before.
Mysterious. Truly unsolved.
Once my uncle showed me slides bought at the one of Warsaw markets. He got them together with a projector and a set of of analogue cameras. Actually no one knows anything about them. The seller claimed that he bought them at the boot sale in France. Who knows…
Apart from the labels on the plastic boxes there is no other information. Except the images, of course. On the plastic film covers and on the box is written: ENNA – Dr. Appelt kg. 8 Munchen 90, so I’m sure the photo lab where they came from was in Munich. That proves my theory that the author of these photos was German. I think that’s the truth.
There is also PERUTZ, which is the name of German photographic company producing materials for slides. It was later on in sixties taken over by Agfa. And KODAKCHROME, so probably type of film used for taking them.
What’s more important, on two of them almost invisible, there is inscription JUL 70. I found it recently and I was surprised. When looking at the images I guessed that these photos must have been taken at the beginning of sixties. So maybe I was wrong.
I have had them for three years, but I scanned them only recently. And I saw them in completely different light. Every person and every place on the screen gained a new, real dimension. Something that was a mystery, not my past, came up on my screen next to hundreds of my own pictures. Peoples’ faces became vivid, features of the cities visible. Scenes photographed by someone I have never known could be seen. Each person got noticed.
What’s next?
I don’t know.
I’m not entirely sure what idea is behind that project. Actually, I would prefer not to call it a project at all. Searching is a more appropriate word.
The best plan would be to find those people and give the slides back to them. I know that could be difficult. As a matter of fact impossible. I suspect they may be even dead or they may not need those memories.
Of course, I’m concerned about publishing them on the web. Mainly because it’s a piece of someone’s private record. I have always believed that postcards and letters should be burnt and not be sold in second hand shops, so as everyone can read them.
I believe with photographs is different though. Besides, most of them describe universal vision. I’m not entirely sure if I’m right, I hope my curiosity will be forgiven and that it doesn’t violate someone’s privacy.
Apparently, photos are being taken for others, not for ourselves. Maybe the author of them thought that too? I hope so!
The most important thing for me is to find out where the pictures came from. I would like to show them to you, so we can discover them together. So you can forward them to your friends in Poland and abroad. To people who might know them or who live in places the photos came from.
The images might be quite easy to recognize. Of course, on the condition that one have seen them before. They portray north and south of Italy as well as north side of Africa. Maybe Tunisia, Algeria or Morocco.
A trail that they followed is on my mind (I said they, although I’m not sure if it was a couple or maybe just one person). I reckon they started their journey in Venice. St Mark’s belfry shown on the images is an obvious proof of that theory. Today I also know for sure that they went to Naples. In the set there were photos portraying oil paintings labeled Museum Di Capodiminte NAPOLI. I have never been there myself, but when I checked on the web, with surprise I discovered that the walls of the museum are on some of the photos!
We also have slides from the cruise, so logical answer would be that they travelled through Tyrrhenian Sea towards Tunisia. Is that possible?
That’s my point of view, but many scenarios could be possible. There could be few places. There could be more than one person and less than two. Maybe together we could reconstruct their journey. Maybe each of us can recreate our own story. Maybe each of us will add something personal. Maybe someone will get inspired. Or maybe nothing will happen. No one will be interested, no one will stop and notice as not to waste their time. Maybe all of it is rubbish (bullshit, nonsense).
Think. Maybe there is something precious in it.
Or maybe it’s us?
Let it happen what happens!
Message me on: forJUL70@gmail.com
Kamila
Kamila
Many thanks to Ula for support and night scanning, to Gabi for the Nino Rota music to keep the vibe and to Julian for lending the slides scanner that took me into different dimension and made me find the summer.
