Warsaw, Poland — K

I woke up to a flat, gray sky dotted with ravens and pigeons. The streets of Warsaw outside of my hotel looked sparse as families prepared to celebrate Three Kings Day, a national holiday in Poland that marks the end of the Christmas season. “Now this is my kind of day to shoot” I thought as I packed my camera and finalized my meticulously planned route through the city.

Plac Wilsona Station

Woman Entering Ratusz Arsenaɫ Station

Pigeons on a Soviet-Era Khrushchevka (apartment building)

Długa Street

Pomnik Powstania Warszawskiego (Warsaw Uprising Monument)

Barbakan Warszawski (Warsaw Barbican)

Mały Powstaniec (Little Insurgent)

Barbakan Warszawski (Warsaw Barbican)

Colorful Buildings in Stare Miasto (Old Town)

Bednarska Street

Praga District across the Vistula River

Crane and Graffiti along the Vistula River

Tram and Bus Meeting on the Śląsko-Dąbrowski Bridge

Cover along Bulwary nad Wisłą (Vistula Boulevards)

Ogród Biblioteki Uniwersyteckiej (Warsaw University Library)

Construction by Park Janiny Porazińskiej

Street Lamps along Aleje Jerozolimskie (Jerusalem Avenue)

Pomnik Fryderyka Chopina (Chopin Monument)

Pałac na Wyspie (Palace on the Isle), Łazienki Park

The goal of this series was to evoke a somber mood and honor Warsaw's rapid resurgence after nearly 90% of the city’s buildings were flattened to the ground (including the historic Old Town) by Hitler during WWII. As I traveled through winding streets, parks, and along the Vistula River, I captured landmarks from medieval times, monuments honoring historical figures and those who bravely fought against Nazi and Red Army occupation, relics of a bygone Soviet era, and evidence of continued construction pointing to a bright future.

Poland’s emergence from the ashes of the 20th century into a modern economic growth engine is nothing short of remarkable, and I can’t help but be proud of my Polish heritage.