Kosmos

Part of a solo exhibition. Screening: Nasza Wspolna Podroz // Our Journey Together at Muzeum Kultury Ludowej in Wegorzewo, Poland

KOSMOS. Every year I visit my hometown located in the picturesque part of northern Poland, Mazury. One of my favorite activities there is to walk and take in exquisite scenery: forests, lakes and local wildlife. 4 years ago, when on one of my afternoon walks, I discovered an area located in the outskirts of the town and slightly hidden from "a general" view. Every morning I would get up at 5 am and visit the place. I would spend there 2-3 hours observing and filming the environment. I would do the same in the late afternoon. It took me and a local wildlife about a week to get used to each other. First few days, birds were on high alert when hearing (no matter how quiet I thought I was) and seeing an intruder. The noise the birds raised alerted a couple of cranes and fawns, my subject of study and observation.

Eventually, the birds accepted my non-threatening presence and lowered their security mode. When asked about my regular morning and late afternoon escapades, I started describing the place as my little Kosmos. But to be honest, it was me feeling very little in a big Kosmos. Besides a couple of cranes and fawns, a lonely tree caught my attention. To my surprise, I found a process of creating this video quite emotional. The last line of Walt Whitman's Kosmos makes a good reference here: “The past, the future, dwelling there, like space, inseparable together.” And I couldn't agree more, again, with Wislawa Szymborska, “You can find the entire cosmos lurking in its least remarkable objects.”