honorable mention
Dimo Dimov bulgaria
title
The Place Called Childhood
I go to the nearby park and watch the kids playing just like I did back there, in the place called childhood. In that place my feet are soaking while I'm sliding down the hill on a piece of nylon given to me by Grandma.
Slidings of memory.
My nose is runny, my hands are frozen cold and feel as if a thousand tiny pins poke my skin. But I don’t want to go home and witness my parents’ endless quarrels. I ask my sister what it is that they so intensely argue about but she doesn’t know either. I don’t dare asking my Grandma who is always smiling even when crying; smiling through tears never explained to me.
Soaking feet, frozen arms and sheer happiness. But I still have to go home. There will be warm soup cooked by Grandma who will take my wet shoes off and will keep my feet in her lap until they start burning with warmth. We will prepare my lessons together and I will count the hours until my parents come home, wishing to stretch time and never get to this moment. It’s always like that.
Now, many years from then, it’s again so cold that a thousand tiny pins seem to poke the skin of my hands holding the camera. I take pictures in the present but the images are those of the past, of that place called childhood where the snow is just an emulation of crystal-white nostalgia.
Childhood is the place where memories are snow.
Dimo had gone through various life challenges being forced to drop out of school and start working to support himself and his family. Low-skilled and underpaid jobs like construction worker, welder, driver, turner and miller had been his options to make a living. But his striving for knowledge made him attend an evening high school while working full time during the day. Later Dimo obtained bachelor and master degrees followed by a PhD. Dimo has recently graduated from a one-year photography program at National Academy for Theater and Film Arts in Sofia (NATFA) „Kr. Sarafov“.
These various educational and life experiences have formed his own perspective on the visual interpretation of the world around.
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entry description
It’s always like that. When the snow starts falling the memories keep flowing.I go to the nearby park and watch the kids playing just like I did back there, in the place called childhood. In that place my feet are soaking while I'm sliding down the hill on a piece of nylon given to me by Grandma.
Slidings of memory.
My nose is runny, my hands are frozen cold and feel as if a thousand tiny pins poke my skin. But I don’t want to go home and witness my parents’ endless quarrels. I ask my sister what it is that they so intensely argue about but she doesn’t know either. I don’t dare asking my Grandma who is always smiling even when crying; smiling through tears never explained to me.
Soaking feet, frozen arms and sheer happiness. But I still have to go home. There will be warm soup cooked by Grandma who will take my wet shoes off and will keep my feet in her lap until they start burning with warmth. We will prepare my lessons together and I will count the hours until my parents come home, wishing to stretch time and never get to this moment. It’s always like that.
Now, many years from then, it’s again so cold that a thousand tiny pins seem to poke the skin of my hands holding the camera. I take pictures in the present but the images are those of the past, of that place called childhood where the snow is just an emulation of crystal-white nostalgia.
Childhood is the place where memories are snow.
about the photographer
Dimo Dimov is a fine art and documentary photographer based in Sofia, Bulgaria. Focusing on long-term projects, Dimo explores the formation of abstract concepts and ideas through the interrelation between personal memories and the surrounding reality.Dimo had gone through various life challenges being forced to drop out of school and start working to support himself and his family. Low-skilled and underpaid jobs like construction worker, welder, driver, turner and miller had been his options to make a living. But his striving for knowledge made him attend an evening high school while working full time during the day. Later Dimo obtained bachelor and master degrees followed by a PhD. Dimo has recently graduated from a one-year photography program at National Academy for Theater and Film Arts in Sofia (NATFA) „Kr. Sarafov“.
These various educational and life experiences have formed his own perspective on the visual interpretation of the world around.
back to gallery