Composer’s letter: A Place of Sacred Ruins
All of the images I’ve used are of a little Ukrainian town Pidhaitsi (Podhajce) where I grew up. This place seriously lacks entertainment establishments. One has to find other ways of amusement. I did. I’ve spent a lot of time hanging out around these sacred ruins and thus they play a significant role in my shaping my tastes and views which is why I wanted to create a story about this place. My story centers on the idea of a state of decay. A Place of Sacred Ruins is compiled of traces of the past that are found in the little town. All of the photos show a similar story of disregard by the local population. It is my attempt to show the glory of the past in the old monuments. To show the bitterness and cruel nature of time. To show the ugly reality of neglect and abandonment. To show that we should care to fix what we have broken.
The first image depicts the town itself. The second image is of a door or an entrance to an old villa that even though is still used, is not properly preserved. The third image is of the same villa but focuses on a stone statue of a lion which gave the house its name. These pictures show structures that are still very much used. Then the story moved on to a picture of a Church that was used as a bathhouse but is no longer used even as that. Followed by pictures of a church and a synagogue of great national and historical value completely not in use. The ninth picture shows a gate that was recently made. It’s very distinct and clear. It’s the only step that the people have taken to preserve anything in that place. It just stops teenagers from entering the structure and leaving a trail of injecting needles on the floor. Sadly, I don’t have a picture that would show these traces. Lastly, I chose a picture of the oldest item and the least preserved item. It’s a stone cross that stood next to a monastery. You can’t even properly see the cross in the picture because of the surrounding grass. I chose this picture because it is the only thing that is left from the monastery with the structure gone. It kind of serves as a warning that other structures could share the same fate. I chose a black & white filter because I tried to give the story a serious and tragic undertone.
I don’t really know If the texts I used to describe the pictures are right. Am I formatting the slides wrong? Also, it kind of feels like a bunch of pictures put together even though I intended a narrative.
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/19UBU73BjYGZobGP2kAlQkjF_Vj081Xu3tjHxMiPs4II/edit?usp=sharing
Hi Olha! Unfortunately I’m unable to view your pictures since I need permission to access them on Google Slides. However, the description for your photo story is really compelling, you chose a great place to feature! Also love the title of your piece, it’s descriptive and interesting. Although I’m not sure if you put a caption under your images, the text from your second paragraph seems like it would work as effective captions for the pictures you chose. I’m basing my “rubric” off of the text and descriptions on your page so far. Great work so far, and good luck with the final story!
Re #1: A
Re #2: A (?)
Re #3: A (?)
Re #4: A
Hello Olha!
As a history enthusiast, I enjoyed the photos that you had to share. I think historical structures–such as, the catholic church you highlighted–are very telling of the culture and the people. I loved the fact that I was able to learn about Ukraine from your photo story. I appreciate how the first photo was an overview of the little Ukrainian town you decided to focus on, while the following photos were of different places within the town–telling a wonderful story of the historic town. I think your photo story was very strong and captivating.
If I had to grade this, I would:
RE #1: A
RE #2: A
RE #3: A
RE #4: A
Hi, Olha,
I love this piece. The black and white is striking, as is the white serif font, all caps, on the black background. Very visually appealing. A few things to consider:
Your title. Sacred implies important yet the story you create seems to draw a striking, almost haunting contrast between the value some would attach (or that formerly was attached) to these sacred spaces and their current state. Maybe you could capture that contrast somehow in your title? Also, on the title slide, include your name and consider using just a bit of the really compelling intro text from your composer’s letter.
Re: the attribution note on the images, maybe include in small size beneath the first image, and ditch the self-effecting note about them; they’re good.
Minor proofing note: on “Another church” slide don’t need the apostrophe on its’ (it’s = it is; its = possessive)
Great draft. –Lisa