honorable mention
Radovan Baran slovakia
title
Fernweh in Bratislava
It was my passion for travelling that has sparked my beautiful relationship with photography. Before Covid-19, I used to photograph mainly when travelling abroad. Naturally, this has changed dramatically in 2020.
As a Central European, I grew up in an ethnically diverse region where you can easily cross four different countries within an hour. Borders are everywhere. When I was born in 1985, crossing some of them was an act that seemed impossible for many of us living behind the Iron Curtain. Luckily, physical borders disappeared more than 30 years ago. The global pandemic however changed it all once again and in March 2020, same as most nations in the world, we found ourselves trapped behind those invisible borders.
I myself became an unhappy prisoner, later transformed into a tourist in my own hometown and an enthusiastic explorer seeing my city with fresh new eyes.
In early 2021, Slovakia became the country with most Covid-related deaths by size of the population in the world. Tough lockdowns, closed borders, social isolation and personal tragedies have affected us all. In our present life in quarantine, we all wish a quick return to our past pre-pandemic life.
I don’t how how will my post-pandemic life look like but I know my photo work will undoubtedly remain influenced by the atmosphere of Bratislava. And I truly hope to feel Heimweh once again.
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entry description
Fernweh is a German word describing a deep desire to travel or a longing for far-off places and a different way of life. But rather than just a craving to be on the road and see the world, it’s an actual pain, a feeling of physical or mental suffering many of us have experienced in the past 12 months.It was my passion for travelling that has sparked my beautiful relationship with photography. Before Covid-19, I used to photograph mainly when travelling abroad. Naturally, this has changed dramatically in 2020.
As a Central European, I grew up in an ethnically diverse region where you can easily cross four different countries within an hour. Borders are everywhere. When I was born in 1985, crossing some of them was an act that seemed impossible for many of us living behind the Iron Curtain. Luckily, physical borders disappeared more than 30 years ago. The global pandemic however changed it all once again and in March 2020, same as most nations in the world, we found ourselves trapped behind those invisible borders.
I myself became an unhappy prisoner, later transformed into a tourist in my own hometown and an enthusiastic explorer seeing my city with fresh new eyes.
In early 2021, Slovakia became the country with most Covid-related deaths by size of the population in the world. Tough lockdowns, closed borders, social isolation and personal tragedies have affected us all. In our present life in quarantine, we all wish a quick return to our past pre-pandemic life.
I don’t how how will my post-pandemic life look like but I know my photo work will undoubtedly remain influenced by the atmosphere of Bratislava. And I truly hope to feel Heimweh once again.
about the photographer
I am a Slovak freelance photographer based between Bratislava and Vienna. My approach is characterised by minimalism and geometric compositions with the human element occurring unexpectedly. My work is strongly influenced by the atmosphere of my hometown Bratislava. The motifs of bridges, cranes, lifeless roofs and the stairs seemingly leading to nowhere dominate my photographic language. In the cities that I know intimately, I predominantly shoot in black and white. Conversely, when traveling and exploring new places, I often switch to colour.back to gallery