“Geometry” by Jerzy Durczak

It means much more to me now than it did right after I took it.

I took this photo in 2016 in Gdansk, Poland, where I was on business. Walking with my camera in the Old Town section of the city I – quite unexpectedly – came upon this beauty.

I immediately fell in love with the intricate geometry of the mosaic and its „fifties“ character. Later I found out that the mosaic had been created by a local artist, Anna Fiszer, and placed on the wall of a movie theater in the 1950s.

In 2019 when I visited the city again I wanted to take more pictures of the mosaic, but couldn’t find it. It was gone. It turned out that a hotel company had bought the movie theater building from the city and removed the mosaic which apparently didn’t look modern enough. So it goes.

Now the photo means much more to me – it is not only a photograph of a fine „old school“ mosaic, a study of the mosaic’s complex geometry, but also a meditation on history, passing of time, change.

Heavy storm was coming and that is why I had no time for considerations. Took several shots and this one turned our to be fine. All I had to do at home was crop.

What do you think are the TWO most impactful features that make your image a good photograph? Don’t be shy!

I like a certain abstract quality of the photo. People looking at it often ask: What is it? I think this is much more than a mere picture of a wall mosaic and a lamppost. I also like the colour palette – the combination of greys and orange is rather unusual.

If you would be able to make this photo once again, what would be the ONE thing you would like to do better or different?

I like it as it is, but it’s obvious that when you photograph something for the second time you pay more attention to the composition. Maybe I would choose a different crop? The mosaic is no longer there so the problem is solved.

Jerzy Durczak shared his photograph in the FRAMES Facebook Group.