The exhibition, prepared by the Polish Humanitarian Action (PAH) in cooperation with the History Meeting House, juxtaposes archival photographs from Poland during and soon after the Second World War with contemporary images of the war in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Ukraine between 2019 and 2022. The latter were captured by Agata Grzybowska, a photographer who works with PAH. Historical photographs come from the collection of the Central Photographic Agency (currently the Polish Press Agency, PAP) and archives of American war correspondents Julien Bryan and John Vachon.

Alicja Ryś, co-curator of the exhibition (PAH): “The atrocities of war are still happening and we cannot remain indifferent to them. With this exhibition, we want to talk about the suffering of the innocent as this is what wars have caused since the dawn of time, regardless of where they have been fought. This is also our way to object to the poetisation or normalisation of war. That said, I find it sad that this exhibition was so easy to put together with so many war images from different countries and different periods. Our selection includes, among others, photos from Warsaw in 1939 and Kharkiv in 2022. The fate and lives of the people shown in them are intertwined in a very poignant way”.

The exhibition consists of 23 photographs showing everyday life in unusual circumstances – during the war. There is an 80-year time gap between the archival and contemporary photographs but what links them is the photographers’ focus on people and their attempts to continue living in their countries despite the war, or in refugee camps: running a household, raising children who play in the backyards, play football and look after younger siblings. Images of war, fear, terror and death are left unshown. What has been captured instead is the waiting, the forced temporality, powerlessness and helplessness.

The outdoor exhibition will be presented on Ks. Jan Twardowski square from 19 August to 9 September 2022.