Prague, how I long to see you again the way I see you in my deepest dreams - silent, mystical, sublime, shrouded in the mist of poetry. Prague, the symphony carved in ancient stone, your music forever resounds on the walls of my longing heart.
My wishful thinking came true at the beginning of July. I got an opportunity to visit my beloved city of Prague, and wander along the cobbled alleyways, looking for those little corners that are deeply engraved in my memories. After a few (far too short) days of taking photographs and relaxing with one of my best friends I headed off to my home town Ostrava to spend a few more days with my Mum.
Having to take a photo every day finally made me get out into the streets of the place I grew up in, and start capturing what is left of my childhood memories. Why is it that we never appreciate the place that we live in? We always look for exotic destinations as far as possible from where we are, and we totally dismiss what is just round the corner. We take our everyday life for granted without realising that one day all we see will be gone forever. I never appreciated my home town. Until now. It might be too late to capture the essence of this former coal mining city, but not too late to record what is left of it, what has changed and what has stayed the same. So a new project was born - Where I Grew Up, and I will continue working on it every time I visit my family and friends.
The two weeks I was away were wonderful. I had time for my Mum and my friends, no internet, no computers, no work, quite a lot of time for photography. However I paid a big price for the indulgence. I spent the rest of the month (and more) catching up on editing, processing, writing. All of that on top of my daily job. So I hit the wall. Perhaps a mid-project crisis. I really thought I wouldn't make it any further. But I am stubborn. I don't know if it is a good thing, but it got me through another month. So here is to five more!
Prague, I am turning you in my fingers like a precious amethyst. But no. That’s only a vision in a magical mirror made of dusty crystals, like Prague itself. A vision of a man, who full of excitement keeps getting lost while looking for himself, a man whose fate is finding himself by getting lost.
Vítězslav Nezval
If you would like to see any of the images and read the stories behind them, please us the links below. There are also a few outtakes that didn't make it as a picture of the day, but which I found hard to part with.
