Atonement (2002)

In 1992, I had an exhibition Lost in Translation at the Mala Galeria, Museum of Contemporary Art in Warsaw, Poland. Whilst visiting my family in Lodz, I asked my cousin to take me to the Jewish cemetery. I borrowed a Rolli reflex camera from the director of the gallery and then proceeded to photograph the cemetery in the midst of a golden Polish autumn – ‘Polska zlota jesien’. The place was covered in yellow leaves that began to resemble deep snowfalls. I remember being totally intoxicated by this atmosphere of heavy autumn. Memory, beauty, nostalgia, longing, belonging… flooded my senses and imagination – the sensory and emotional phenomena associated with the cyclic nature of autumn, time passing, and the enigma of the homeland place. My cousin couldn’t understand why I wanted to photograph the Jewish cemetery, but I knew instinctively upon entering and passing through the gates, that this would be my gesture of atonement.

Atonement consists of two suites of photographic work: The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz and Polska Zlota Jesien (A Golden Polish Autumn). These works (60 in total) are redolent in historic memory and reference a Poland of the recent past, anchored by two historical moments: the Holocaust and Communism. The absence of the Jewish community is located in the gaps and silences – images of doorways, empty streets and laneways, public squares, building facades, and apartments – that make reference to prior and present occupation and challenge ownership. These works also signal life under the Communist regime. A set of portraits cuts through this installation, mainly of children, and, in fact, my extended family. Their presence signals potential and future possibilities, and, likewise, offers a symbolic gesture of atonement.

Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien (A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Publications

Atonement (Catalogue Essay by Kay Ferres)

The Enigma of the Homeland Place (Chris Barry)

The Translative Space of Art (Chris Barry)

Links

National Library of
Australia
--Catalogue:
Atonement

Jewish Museum
(past exhibitions)

 

Installations

The Jewish Museum of Australia, Melbourne, 2002

Image above left:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm
Collection: Jewish Museum of Australia

Image above right:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm
Collection: Jewish Museum of Australia

Image above left:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm

Image above right:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm

Image above left:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm
Collection: Jewish Museum of Australia &
University of Melbourne

Image above right:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm
Collection: Jewish Museum of Australia

Image above left:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm

Image above right:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm
Collection: Jewish Museum of Australia

 

Image above left:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm

Image above right:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm
Collection: Jewish Museum of Australia

Image above:
Chris Barry
The Jewish Cemetery of Lodz
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
80.0cm x 80.0cm
Collection: Jewish Museum of Australia

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm
Collection: University of Melbourne

Image above:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above left:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above right:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above left:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above right:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above left:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above right:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above left:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm

Image above right:
Chris Barry
Polska Zlota Jesien
(A Golden Polish Autumn)
Atonement (2002)
Inkjet print
70.0cm x 70.0cm