Wroclaw (Breslau) Jewish Cemetery - 4 pictures

[Iduna]

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Duisburg, Landscape Park North.

 

This location is so full of potential that one can spend their days shooting with different light and subjects. This time we started with wideangle aspects first. We were drawn to its surreal aspects.

 

 

Leica Q

 

 

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[Iduna]

no 2

 

 

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[Iduna]

no 3

 

I am sorry, I added the wrong text

 

Now:

 

we had to search a while for the entrance of the Jewish Cemetery in Wroclaw. If we had known it to beng called a museum we would have not run about alongside its walls. But it was worthwhile a visit because it bears much potential for morbid aspects. We swa a reportage on it and learned about the activities of a German scholl visiting the place regularly to free it from weed and save it for the memory of the people. This seem to be ver successful and one can see the beginning of  getting back to the interest in history.

 

Olympus EM 5 with Nocticron 43 mm

 

 

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[Iduna]

no 4

 

 

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[pechelman]

These old Jewish cemeteries in Poland are certainly moving. I'm sorry I didnt get to visit more on my trip last month, so thank you (truly!) for sharing yours. Compared to the others I visited, there seems to be a distinct lack of stones placed on the headstones. Maybe this one isnt visited very much? Or certainly not visited by many Jews.

 

For the pictures, maybe it is my screen\calibration, but they all seemed to be toned differently (different borders too)?  Was that intentional? 

Would prefer to see these treated together as a set with the same processing. And maybe it's the contrast/sharpness/levels or more likely my monitor calibration again, but they appear a bit harsh to my eye.  Hopefully I do not sound too negative, because that isnt my intent, but I was compelled to reply because of the subject matter that also intrigues and moves me. Would love to see more

[Iduna]

Pechelman,

 

thank you very much for our detailed feedback. You are right:

1. the cemetery is not visited much. Yet it has all facilties, small office and restrooms. But headstones there are a few and one photo een is giving evidence of this. I also do not think that many Jews go there. Yet we could make out that interest in this place may become more in future.

2. Yes, You are right, there is a different toning to the pictures. I did not intend a series but made it dependant on the atmosphere of each picture. But it makes sense to provide each one with the same processing. 

3.Yes. They are tack sharp, because the lens Nocticron can show all this. I wanted to work upon the morbid aspect and not soften it by reduced clarity. But it is worthwhile think about this again. Yet you noticed just this discrepancy and this makes me happy that it came out 

 

this is what makes this forum that you can start a discussion and get new ideas.

[stuny]

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A lovely set.

[war]

All of your cemetery images are beautifully composed. The crowded stones in the second is particularly moving. One hopes that these monuments will never be obliterated by nature as in your industrial ruins photos.

[Brenton C]

Thank you for bringing a stirring series to the forum for us to ponder.

[Iduna]

Stuart,

many thanks for looking at these pictures!

 

War,

thank you! That is why I shot the series in order to tell a story and do something infavour of these abandoned places. I think there is a reason for being hopeful. Te young Polish generation seems to be interested in history now and specilly in Wroclaw one feels a new development.

 

Brenton,

many thank!  - it makes me happy when people feel a kind of message.

[sblitz]

As photographs, wonderful. As a subject, very said. Most if not all the Jews in the city were killed during the war and of those that weren't, they didn't go back. Also, the Nazis were known to desecrate Jewish cemeteries by using the headstones as paving for roads for tanks or even to hold up the earth when building bomb shelters (see old Jewish cemetery in former East Berlin . . . yes I was there). As for the paving stones, a few years back I was interested in where my father's father came from and I circled it to Luvow, now in Ukraine was in Austro-Hungary in 1900. Anyway, Jewish headstones are a great means of genealogy because there is the tradition of listing the names of the father and very often the mother (with maiden name) as well. Anyway after some investigated I found out that the cemetery in the city would yield no answers, the Nazis took the headstones away, some dumped in the river. Oh well, a history best left a mystery I suppose.

 

I took some pictures of the cemetery in old East Berlin (near the restored synagogue) and when I returned home I realized that what I should have tried to capture is the loss of what was and of what was done to it. I didn't, I don't know how, but if I ever get back I am going to try.

 

Lduna, thanks for posting, I always enjoy your posts even if I don't always comment.  Hopefully you didn't mind the "history" lesson, as this may be information you are very much aware of.

 

Steve

[Iduna]

Steve,

 

on the contrary. Thanks for sharing your experiences. Even if most of the stories are sad, but at least we are talking about these our discoveries. As soon as we leave talking about it, forgetfulness will win. but I am under the impression that attentiveness has grown, knowledge about history and documentary are essential and should be done anyway. Let us hope, that this will develop and let us do our work in finding evidences.

Thank you, Steve.

[robert blu]

I have only been once in a Jewish cemetery, it was in Berlin and I felt a very special mood, because of the place and the related history. I took a few pictures and soon realized that was not easy to proper render the place. The feelings, the history. You did it very well, together with the photos in the other thread.

 

Did you consider to print them for an exhibition? Or to make a booklet with them? These are photos worthwhile to be seen...

 

robert

Edited August 22, 2016 by robert blu

[Iduna]

Robert,

thank you very much! Your feedback is interesting for one reason: I had the same problem of rendering and it took me a while.

 

When being there I knew I would have to convert it into B&W. So I looked for lines and texture and neglected the colour. Only just recently I started processing them. I waited because I wanted to do the pp with my new Eizo monitor. Second it is sometimes better to wait with pp because then you look at the pictures from a distance. Here I used Nik Silver Efex Pro and did my own mixture trying find for each shot an adequate rendering.

Yes, it should be worthwhile to make a colection, for there are a few more shots also. Fine idea, I'll try a realization.