Stories from Europeana 1989
Last month, people across Poland shared their memories.
Among these items were: a collection of underground press documents, black and white music festival photographs and an album of illegal postage stamps. The most surprising item was a white Polonez car produced in the ‘80s. Photographs of all memorabilia gathered in Poland can be viewed at www.europeana1989.eu.
Polonez car digitised at the Warsaw event. 'Samochód marki Polonez koloru białego, rok produkcji: 1986', Europeana 1989, CC-BY-SA
Europeana 1989 is an exciting new project from Europeana, Europe's digital library, museum and archive. It aims to create a digital archive of souvenirs and memories connected to the fall of the Iron Curtain. Europeana 1989 encourages European citizens to share their experiences, stories and memorabilia in time for 2014 when the world will celebrate the 25th anniversary of an extraordinary year: 1989.
The project was launched in Poland in June. Europeana, together with the National Audiovisual Institute, organised three events in Warsaw, Poznan and Gdańsk. During these events, volunteers took photographs or made other digital versions of everyday objects, pictures, movies and audio recordings. Once digitised, items were returned to their owners and their electronic versions were made available in the online archive: www.europeana1989.eu. Poles brought hundreds of souvenirs and unique personal stories which show that while the ‘80s are associated with politics and Solidarity, they also provided a remarkable backdrop to the joys and sorrows of everyday life.
The diversity of memories
The project was launched in Poland in June. Europeana, together with the National Audiovisual Institute, organised three events in Warsaw, Poznan and Gdańsk. During these events, volunteers took photographs or made other digital versions of everyday objects, pictures, movies and audio recordings. Once digitised, items were returned to their owners and their electronic versions were made available in the online archive: www.europeana1989.eu. Poles brought hundreds of souvenirs and unique personal stories which show that while the ‘80s are associated with politics and Solidarity, they also provided a remarkable backdrop to the joys and sorrows of everyday life.
The diversity of memories
Among the items brought in were underground press (independent newspapers), election leaflets, food stamps, old bank notes, documents and family photos, clothes and toys. The diversity of the memories captured by the project is amazing.
Photograph of Jarocin music festival, 'Publiczność na małej scenie Festiwalu w Jarocinie' Maciej Jawornicki CC BY-SA
One of the participants shared his great collection of black and white photos depicting the famous music festival in Jarocin back in 1988. The popular event attracted many subcultures, which you can see in this photo collection. Another person brought whole albums of illegal postage stamps depicting well-known opposition activists of the ‘80s. Their owner made and copied them with his friends in secrecy in a private apartment.
Many stories present how bizarre life behind the Iron Curtain could sometimes be. Take the story of a Gdańsk citizen who bought a car in exchange for copper. He said that in 1989 there was a general lack of goods, so he sold about two tons of copper wires, at the time worth half a million PLN. What is more, the bank gave him this amount of money in cash. Afterwards, he bought a Fiat 126p and went on holiday with his family. This, and many other everyday life stories describing the ‘80s are on www.europeana1989.eu.
Many stories present how bizarre life behind the Iron Curtain could sometimes be. Take the story of a Gdańsk citizen who bought a car in exchange for copper. He said that in 1989 there was a general lack of goods, so he sold about two tons of copper wires, at the time worth half a million PLN. What is more, the bank gave him this amount of money in cash. Afterwards, he bought a Fiat 126p and went on holiday with his family. This, and many other everyday life stories describing the ‘80s are on www.europeana1989.eu.
‘The motto of the project is ‘Europeana 1989 - We made history'. Our goal is to document that history – showing it from the perspective of ordinary people living at the time, recording their stories and struggles, so that people's real experiences are kept for our children and for future generations', said Frank Drauschke, Europeana 1989 project coordinator. ‘Ordinary people make extraordinary history and that's what we want to highlight.'
'We are happy that Poles brought such a variety of souvenirs. From the very start of the project, we've encouraged people to share their objects and memories, but we were surprised by how many interesting stories are hidden in seemingly ordinary items of everyday use. We believe that by preserving this great material we are preserving the memory of this important period of history', said Michał Merczyński, Director of the National Audiovisual Institute.The digital online archive now contains nearly 8,000 items and the number is constantly growing.
The next stages of the project
Poland was the first country to run Europeana 1989 collection days. On 8 June, the country also hosted a debate on the transformation of Europe during the inaugural collection day in Warsaw. Each participating country was represented by an ambassador who played a significant role in the transformation period of 1989: Sarmīte Ēlerte from Latvia, Tunne Kelam from Estonia, Petr Janyška from Czech Republic, Wolfgang Templin from Germany and László Rajk from Hungary. Poland was represented by its first non-communist Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki and photographer Chris Niedenthal, who documented the process of democratisation in Poland.
‘Collection days in Poland are only the beginning of the creation of the common European online archive. We started in Poland because this was where all the important changes in Europe began. In August, we are moving to the Baltic states and then to the Czech Republic, Germany and Hungary, visiting all the countries of the former Eastern Bloc. It doesn't mean, however, that the project in Poland has ended – it is still possible to add souvenirs directly to the Europeana 1989 website. The more people who contribute, the more complete our picture of what happened in Europe in 1989 will be', said Frank Drauschke, Europeana 1989 project coordinator.Online memory bank
All those who could not participate in the collection days held in Poland can add their stories to the online archive. Just register at www.europeana1989.eu and upload your digital recordings or photographs together with accompanying descriptions or stories.
Explore the stories uploaded already to see how this historical period looked in different European countries. The archive will grow as the project visits the participating countries – so keep coming back to www.europeana1989.eu to find out more fascinating stories.
You can also follow Europeana 1989 on Facebook (facebook.com/europeana1989) and Twitter (@europeana1989).
More information:
Frank Drauschke
Facts and Files
+49 (0) 163 480 98 62
[email protected]
Jon Purday
Europeana
+44 (0) 788 551 62 34
[email protected]
Daniel Durlak
TBWA PR
+48 (22) 457 06 73
[email protected]
Aleksandra Rogala
Media Relations Specialist
National Audiovisual Institute of Poland
+48 22 380 49 76, 662 949 633
[email protected]
Agnieszka Wolak
Spokesperson
National Audiovisual Institute of Poland
+48 22 380 49 75, 503 099 013
[email protected]
About Europeana 1989
In 2014, the world will celebrate the 25th anniversary of an extraordinary year - 1989 - when walls crumbled and people of Europe were united again. The Europeana 1989 project aims to create a vivid and personal picture of the revolutionary events in Europe with stories, photos, videos and sound recordings from every country affected. The result will be a fascinating archive that can be explored for work, learning or pleasure. Europeana 1989 is a collaboration between the Polish National Audiovisual Institute, Europeana and Historypin.
www.europeana1989.eu
About Europeana
The Europeana 1989 project is part of something much bigger – Europeana, Europe's digital library, museum and archive. Europeana collects and provides access to digitised material from libraries, archives, audiovisual archives and museums. It has more than 2,200 collaborating institutions and the website is available in 29 European languages. Europeana allows the public to discover and explore the cultural and intellectual heritage of Europe through a simple search engine and virtual exhibitions. Since its launch by the European Commission in November 2008, Europeana has grown to include 27 million documents and heritage works. All the stories and objects collected by Europeana 1989 will also be made available through www.europeana.eu
More information:
Frank Drauschke
Facts and Files
+49 (0) 163 480 98 62
[email protected]
Jon Purday
Europeana
+44 (0) 788 551 62 34
[email protected]
Daniel Durlak
TBWA PR
+48 (22) 457 06 73
[email protected]
Aleksandra Rogala
Media Relations Specialist
National Audiovisual Institute of Poland
+48 22 380 49 76, 662 949 633
[email protected]
Agnieszka Wolak
Spokesperson
National Audiovisual Institute of Poland
+48 22 380 49 75, 503 099 013
[email protected]
About Europeana 1989
In 2014, the world will celebrate the 25th anniversary of an extraordinary year - 1989 - when walls crumbled and people of Europe were united again. The Europeana 1989 project aims to create a vivid and personal picture of the revolutionary events in Europe with stories, photos, videos and sound recordings from every country affected. The result will be a fascinating archive that can be explored for work, learning or pleasure. Europeana 1989 is a collaboration between the Polish National Audiovisual Institute, Europeana and Historypin.
www.europeana1989.eu
About Europeana
The Europeana 1989 project is part of something much bigger – Europeana, Europe's digital library, museum and archive. Europeana collects and provides access to digitised material from libraries, archives, audiovisual archives and museums. It has more than 2,200 collaborating institutions and the website is available in 29 European languages. Europeana allows the public to discover and explore the cultural and intellectual heritage of Europe through a simple search engine and virtual exhibitions. Since its launch by the European Commission in November 2008, Europeana has grown to include 27 million documents and heritage works. All the stories and objects collected by Europeana 1989 will also be made available through www.europeana.eu
About the National Audiovisual Institute of Poland
The National Audiovisual Institute of Poland (NInA) is a leading state cultural institution established to digitse, share, and promote Polish audiovisual heritage. The mission of NInA is to collect, archive, reconstruct and share the most valuable forms of film, music, and drama culture. The Institute initiates and supports festivals, concerts, conferences, and exhibitions, co-operating with both recognised and alternative domestic and foreign artists. The National Audiovisual Institute was responsible for the Cultural Program - Polish EU Presidency 2011 conception and realisation, stimulating Polish cultural landscape and encouraging people to actively participate in the interdisciplinary program of various projects, including European Culture Congress in Wroclaw.
www.nina.gov.pl.
About Historypin
Europeana and Historypin formed a strategic partnership to provide an innovative platform for the project website of Europeana 1989. Europeana1989.eu is hosted within the framework of Historypin and makes use of its technologies. Historypin sets out to bring people together around the history of their families and streets, from across different generations and cultures, to explore and create a global communal archive, building up a picture of the past. Historypin.com allows users to upload photos, videos, audio recordings, and stories and pin them to a particular date and time on the Historypin map of the world. Street level images and videos can be also be overlaid onto Google Maps Street View on the Historypin site for a fascinating and nostalgic then-and-now juxtaposition. Historypin is a not-for-profit project that supports its development through grants and sponsorship. www.historypin.com