Albedo, installation, digital photography
The Albedo project consists of a series of photographs taken in the main staircase of a building located at no. 10 Sarego street in Kraków. All that remains of a former bourgeois interior are three stained glass windows designed by Stefan Matejko in 1912, and produced by the S. G. Żeleński atelier in Kraków. Albedo is an abstract representation of light phenomena appearing in the staircase thanks to the presence of a historical piece of art, S. Matejko’s stained glass windows. In this case, these are not only relics of the past, but living elements that alter and shape the space they form part of. They enrich the shabby interior by “painting” its decaying walls with a colorful palette of lights.
The term Albedo refers to a parameter measuring the Earth’s ability to reflect the sunlight, which changes with time. The amount of sunrays reaching the Earth reduces, inter alia, due to the environmentally harmful human behavior. If the scientists’ hypothesis regarding albedo proves to be correct, in a couple of centuries from now the Earth will become much darker. The consequence of alteration of the Earth’s albedo will be a change in the perception of an artwork, especially stained glass, as the secret of its impact depends heavily on the interaction with sunlight. The Albedo project is an attempt at isolating, recording and “curating” the light phenomena that will be disappearing year by year, discreetly reminding us of the global environmental changes.
ⓒ Katarzyna Feiglewicz 2024