hidden europe 10

The last picture show

by hidden europe

Summary

hidden europe celebrates the life and work of a pioneering Russian photographer.

In a modest sort of way, we like to think that in hidden europe we are documenting some of our continent's unsung corners. Many have engaged in such endeavours before us, as, from pilgrimages to post-colonial explorations, travellers have sketched out their impressions of the peoples and places they encountered along the way. One man we rather admire for his sharp eye and technical prowess in documenting landscape and culture is a little known Russian traveller and photographer.

One hundred years ago, Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorsky put to the tsar a proposal to create a photographic inventory of the empire that was Russia.

Related articleFull text online

Between the Steppe and the Sea

For Odesa writer Issac Babel, his home town was 'the most charming city of the Russian empire'. For many visitors today, Odesa is one of the most striking Black Sea ports. Join us as we head up the Potemkin Steps to discover Odesa.

Related articleFull text online

A Polish port: Frombork

In Frombork, a tiny port on Poland's Baltic coast, the ferry terminal has closed down for the winter. A lone fisherman sits at the end of the pier and looks out over the lagoon to Russia. But the town where Nicolaus Copernicus lived and worked turns out to have a rare off-season appeal.