Second Bank — pawelstarzec.com

Paweł Starzec

Documentalist, sociologist, academic teacher.

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Second Bank

Second Bank is a story about right side of Wisła River in Warsaw, Poland. The division is not only spatial, but also a social one; the first bank is equally afraid and fascinated by the second one. Praga and Grochów districts were less affected by the WW2 destruction of the city, but despite the gradual expansion with a lot of heavy industry being located there, the right bank of the capital was neglected and is still considered a far away land for those living on the opposite side. As I started my life in Warsaw on this second, wrong side of the division, and now I live there as well, I document how it changes with time.

2014 – ongoing.

Pictured here is the administrative border between Praga North and South districts.

Nowe Dynasy velodrome, opened in 1972 in partnership with nearby PZO factory, closed in 1985. For the last 10 years, both local community and cycling enthusiasts push the city to open the premises for the general public, to no avail.

Since I moved back to the Second Bank in 2023, there was a number of spontaneus fires in otherwise abandoned buildings. Most of them were since demolished, and plots sold for new investments.

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